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A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 
AND BUENOS AIRES 
THE CITY BEAUTIFUL 



BY 

IDA M. CAPPEAU 




BOSTON 

SHERMAN, FRENCH & COMPANY 

1916 







I: 



V * 



©GLA4-|5909 



DEC -I 1916 



Copyright, 1916 
Sherman, French & Cobipany 



n. 



i * 



TO 

MY FRIENDS 
IN ARGENTINE 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 

A Hunting Scene: Northern Argentine . Frontis. 

FACING 
PAGE 

Preparing for the Bath: Crossing the Equator \6^ 

The Plunge: Crossing the Equator ... 20 

Delivering Milk and Chickens: Bahia, Brazil 28 

A Scene along the Road: Northern Argentine 44 v 

A Pack Train 66 

Native Indian Women: Northern Argentine 92 ^ 

Tree Called "The Drunkard": Northern 
Argentine 118- 



INTRODUCTION 

How many times in my dreams I have sailed 
on a summer day to that enchanted country of 
South America. In my fancy I have lived in 
that City Beautiful, Buenos Aires, the gay 
Paris of the Southern Hemisphere. I have 
always loved in my heart our beautiful, grace- 
ful, dark-eyed Latin cousins, and built many 
a romance around the dashing Spanish cava- 
liers of the early days of that country. In my 
dreams I have tried to imagine how beautiful 
the Bay of Rio de Janiero really would be. I 
have even shuddered at the encountering of a 
huge boa constrictor twined around a tree, like 
the one we saw, as children, in the pictures of 
our old school geography. I have seen myself 
murdered by pirates, and robbed by wicked 
bandits. I have sizzled and baked with the 
heat and gasped for breath when crossing the 
equator. I thought I could almost see, high in 
the heavens, the wonderful Southern Cross. I 
have traversed on horseback the vast pampas, 
and have seen the brave " gauche " (or cow- 
boy), with his great herds of cattle. But I 
have always awakened. They were only day 
dreams. 



INTRODUCTION 

The wonders of South America, its scenery 
and romance, had lured me as no other country 
ever had. Fancy, then, my surprise and de- 
light when J., my husband, who is an oil and 
gas engineer, announced: 

" We will sail in two weeks for Buenos Aires. 
Can you be ready? " 

Could I be ready? I was at that very in- 
stant ready. 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 

August QOth: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

At last the eventful day arrived. Now J. 
was never known to get excited, or to be in a 
hurry, nor was he ever known to miss a train ; 
but this morning he was awake at dawn, both 
anxious and excited. Our boat, the steamship 
Vasari of the Lamport and Holt Company's 
line, was not sailing until three o'clock in the 
afternoon from Pier 8, Brooklyn, but J. had 
no intention of missing it. We left our hotel 
at exactly eleven o'clock a. m. Not in an 
automobile, — oh, my, no ! that possessed pos- 
sibilities of a puncture ; but in a good, strong, 
reliable, four-wheeler, all our luggage atop and 
inside, — there was to be no missing of boxes 
or parcels. 

Until this moment in my life New York had 
possessed wonderful fascinations, but this 
morning, as we slowly made our way toward 
Brooklyn, everything looked mediocre. I only 
saw in my mind's eye the beautiful Bay of Rio 
de Janiero and the wonders of foreign cities. 
Over and over, I was trying to pronounce cor- 
rectly Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Bahia, and 
1 



2 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

other strange names, and I was not a little per- 
turbed, as I crossed the gang plank, with the 
idea that my first experience of a long voyage 
at sea was to be one of twenty-four days' dura- 
tion. What if I should suffer le mal de mer? 

The very moment I put my foot on deck I 
knew there was something I was not going to 
like about that boat. I wasn't just quite sure 
why, but it seemed to me she was wiggly. I 
forgot it for a time, while we investigated our 
cabin, which we found filled with those beau- 
tiful, loving tokens which dear friends send to 
brighten and gladden the voyage. Our tele- 
grams and letters cheered us somewhat. Re- 
turning to the deck, we found that many of our 
fellow voyagers were arriving. They, with the 
friends who came to bid them adieu, made a gay 
scene. All was bustle and confusion. 

We enjoyed a delightful lunch with a dear 
friend who had come to say adieu, and before 
we knew it we were sailing away, waving a last 
farewell to those we had left standing on the 
pier. We were off on our long journey. 

Usually I would have raved over the beau- 
tiful ride down the New York bay, but the idea 
seized me of sending one more last word back 
by the pilot, and I rushed for paper and pen. 
When we saw him descend the long ladder and 
steam away, we knew that our fate was sealed, 
— that nothing but death or a miracle could 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 3 

separate us from the Vasari. We turned to 
look at her. What a splendid vessel she was, 
— with wide decks, polished hard wood floors, 
chintz hung cabins, linen covered furniture in 
the lounging and music rooms ! Everything 
looked so cool, clean and inviting I knew that 
we should be very happy and comfortable, — 
except for one thing: she kept going up and 
down all the time, — up and down, — and I did 
not like it. 

While we were dressing for dinner the chief 
steward knocked on our door and asked us 
where we should like to sit. I answered at 
once, at any place except the captain's table, 
as it seemed to me that everybody I had ever 
met who had made an ocean voyage had always 
boasted of having sat beside that distinguished 
personage. Not that I might not adore the 
captain, but I could not endure the prospective 
bore. During our voyage we had a small table, 
a steward who proved attentive, and it was 
pleasant not to have to talk when one was filled 
with sublime thoughts of the wonderful sea. 

I did not descend to the dining salon with 
any assurance of comfort ; I had the greatest 
inclination to hold to something or to somebody 
and positively no confidence that I should 
arrive anywhere on this uneasy going boat. 
The dinner was very good, and afterwards as 
we, J. and I, sat in our secluded corner on the 



4 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

deck and looked at the beautiful moonlight re- 
flected on the water, we were very happy, and, 
I am not sure but that we might have been 
holding hands under the steamer rug and say- 
ing sweet nothings to one another, because, 
you see, this was our silver wedding journey 
and we were starting for a long holiday to- 
gether; before us lay mysteries which promised 
many pleasures to our curious minds. 

Sunday, August 21st: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

We were awakened, — not by the church 
bells, but by a bugle. The hour we had se- 
lected for our salt bath was 7 :30, and when we 
had finished we found iced orange juice, tea and 
toast served us in our cabin. After a walk on 
deck, we were ready for our breakfast. Now 
I might as well confess that I was horribly dis- 
appointed because I did not feel a bit as I had 
expected I should, and it was all because the 
boat was bobbing and I did not like the sensa- 
tion. Very frankly, I wished that I had re- 
turned with the pilot. It was a very hot day, 
the hottest one of the voyage. We were some- 
where near Bermuda; the sea was very heavy, 
— it might have been the crossing of the Gulf 
Stream ; anyway, the stewardess consoled me 
somewhat by confiding that she, too, always felt 
badly the first few days out. 

We also discovered that our cabin was on 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 5 

the wrong side of the vessel. You may think 
there couldn't be any choice of sea air on ship- 
board, but make no mistake, — if you contem- 
plate a voyage to South America, be quite sure 
that your cabin is always facing Africa. 
Don't ask me why; just do as I tell you! Be 
on Africa's side ! It may be in deference to 
" The Great Sphinx," but no matter, always 
depend upon Africa for the breezes. The kind 
purser (an awfully good person to have for a 
friend on a sea voyage) changed our cabin for 
a nice, large, comfortable one on the right and 
proper east side of the vessel. Even then I 
really felt much better lying down, with an 
electric fan buzzing over my head, because — 
well, I will be honest, I didn't think that the 
boat was steady going. Not that I was the 
least bit sea sick, — oh, no, not at all ; it was 
all the fault of the boat, — she bobbed too 
much! 

August %%nd: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

I did think that if the good captain of this 
nice Vasari only knew how much I wished he 
would stop, just for a moment, his wiggly 
boat, he would instantly have had compassion 
on me and would have done so. I know I 
should have looked differently at people and 
things. As it was, I did not think much of 
him ? — either his boat, or its passengers, — or 



6 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

of J., or, in fact, of anything except the per- 
fectly stationary, solid, dry earth, where I 
wished with all my heart I had remained. 
Everything looked double and sometimes triple, 
and whether double or triple, it all moved up 
and down, much to my discomfort. 

August %3rd: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

After a fine salt bath, delicious iced orange 
juice, which the steward now always served us, 
and a turn or two on deck, I descended to the 
dining salon, — to my great joy, without hold- 
ing on to anything. I dashed up and down 
stairs unaided; nothing bobbed; nothing went 
up and down except the horizon, just as it 
should have done in the first place. The boat 
was as steady as the earth and we were going 
straight ahead ; and, best of all, to my great 
satisfaction and relief I found I really had 
only one husband, there was only one captain, 
and I was standing firmly on my pedal extrem- 
ities. There was a joy once more in being 
alive. It was a perfect summer day. Every- 
thing was so beautiful. One could not tell 
whether sky or sea was the more fascinating, 
both were so clear, calm and blue. 

In the afternoon we received a visit from the 
captain, who invited us for tea and who showed 
us the chart room, which was very interesting 
even if I couldn't understand much about it. 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 7 

He told us that we were seven hundred miles 
east of Key West, and sometimes they encoun- 
tered hurricanes in this portion of the sea ; that 
we were following the loneliest path of the 
South Atlantic Ocean, and perhaps we would 
not see a single sail until nearing Brazil, four- 
teen days from here. 

The captain's cabin was so attractive; it 
contained a fine library, some very interesting 
pictures of celebrities who had been his pas- 
sengers, some fine etchings and many photo- 
graphs of places where he had been and of 
things he had seen. He brewed delicious tea 
which had been sent to him by some friends 
in China. 

We enjoyed ourselves so much. Isn't it 
strange how happy one can be on a boat, far 
out at sea, if she behaves properly and does 
not bob? 

August %4*th: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

We were feeling so well, — it was a perfect 
day. I could not leave the deck, even to eat 
my lunch, it was all so fascinating. The spray 
on either side of the boat had beautiful rain- 
bows made by the sun shining on the white 
foam. Oh, it was too beautiful! I was en- 
chanted. We sat on deck the night before 
until midnight; the air was delightful. The 
ladies now wore the thinnest muslin gowns and 



8 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

the men wore linen or pongee suits. It never 
seemed too cold or too warm. The temper- 
ature was perfect. The captain joined us 
about ten o'clock, and he told us tales of the 
sea. He ran away at fourteen years of age 
and had followed the sea ever since. Some of 
the hardships he endured as a common sailor, 
a mere boy, in the Indian Ocean, were worthy 
of a " Diamond Dick " series. He described 
the hurricanes and typhoons he had encoun- 
tered. He thought the sailor of today a molly- 
coddle compared with those of his early days. 
Now they have as much food in one day as he 
would have received in a week. The captain 
was an Irishman, — most interesting ; however, 
he thought a man made a great mistake in com- 
manding a steamship carrying passengers who 
asked foolish questions which bored him, but 
promised to answer all my questions once, since 
it was my first experience at sea. 

August %5th: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

There was aboard the Vasari sl Brazilian 
composer, Senor de Oliveiro, who played the 
piano divinely. I thought, as I listened to his 
playing of selections from " Grieg," that I had 
never heard music so well suited to the sea. It 
was heavenly to look at those blue, blue waters 
and hear those sweet strains of melody. Never 
had I loved " Grieg " as I did at that moment. 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 9 

This composer presented me with several of 
his compositions, and brought some duets to 
the music room, hoping I would play them with 
him. He was returning to Rio from a world's 
convention of the Esparentists which had been 
held in Washington; he told me that many of 
the Brazilians were learning to speak this 
language and it was his opinion that it would 
be the future universal tongue. 

In the morning we went to see the Kentucky 
racing horses which were kept between decks ; 
there were fifty-seven thoroughbreds owned by 
Major C, who was taking them to Buenos 
Aires. I was told that the Argentines were 
devoted to horse racing and would pay fabulous 
prices for good horses. The Major was a true 
type of Southern gentleman. It was he who 
found, after hours of hunting in Rio de 
Janiero, fresh green mint, and who made us a 
" mint julep " with real Bourbon whiskey the 
night we sailed from that port. He also told 
us not to make the mistake of drinking it, — we 
should sip it ; but whether drinking or sipping, 
it was the most seductive drink I had ever 
tasted. And this same gentleman could gen- 
erally be found with a small red book in his 
hand entitled " English-Spanish, Your Own 
Teacher." He informed us later that one day 
while in Buenos Aires, desiring a hair cut, he 
had tried to use the phrase in Spanish, but 



10 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

being unable to make himself understood, he 
pointed to the sentence in the book, and the 
amused barber asked, with an Irish brogue, 
" Is it jour hair you wish cut, sir ? " 
There was a little English sailor who almost 
paralyzed me by running like a squirrel along 
the railings of the deck. I couldn't see why 
he didn't fall into the sea, as there was abso- 
lutely nothing to prevent his doing so. About 
four o'clock one afternoon a whistle blew 
furiously, and in an instant every steward, 
mate and sailor rushed on deck and began to 
lower the life boats. I was so frightened that 
I almost jumped into one, and should have done 
so if the kind Argentine, Commander Y., had 
not assured me it was only the usual practice 
of a fire drill. I found it interesting after I 
understood what it really was, but I confess I 
had a few very unpleasant moments. It broke 
the ice, however, for a conversation with the 
Commander. He was one of the officers who 
was in command of the Argentine battleship 
which rescued the French explorers in search 
of the South Pole a few years ago, and we 
found him a very interesting companion. He 
told us many things about the society of his 
country. He said that the young people did 
not have the same opportunity of knowing each 
other as they do in our country. If a boy had 
a sister, he did not bring his friends into the 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 11 

home ; he amused or entertained them elsewhere. 
A girl, when of proper age, accompanied her 
parents to the opera or was seen driving on 
the Corso with her mother or companion; she 
never appears in public unchaperoned. If she 
were admired by a young gentleman, he asked 
permission to call, and such calls were usually 
considered equivalent to a proposal of mar- 
riage on his part. He was expected to see his 
fiancee only in the presence of her parents until 
after the marriage ceremony. 

The Argentine women are devoted to their 
large families. Often when a child marries, 
they remain under the father's roof. And 
when a wealthy Argentine family travels, — 
and they generally go to Europe every year, 
— they take the entire household and a large 
retinue of servants. They engage, if neces- 
sary, an entire deck of the steamer. Wherever 
connecting rooms are required, a door is cut 
between at the expense of the Argentine. 
Cows are taken on shipboard to supply the fam- 
ily with fresh milk and cream ; fattened fowl 
are also a necessity for the comfort of the fam- 
ily, who deny themselves nothing that money 
can purchase. 

Commander Y. showed us the pictures of his 
beautiful young wife and child, who were at 
that time in Switzerland with his wife's parents. 
There was another young navy officer, Lieuten- 



12 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

ant E., — quite the handsomest young Argen- 
tine I saw in South America; but he could not 
speak English, so I conversed with him in 
German. A Doctor D., who had gone to Har- 
vard four years before not knowing a word of 
English, was now returning with a diploma, 
speaking English fluently. Carlos S. P. com- 
pleted the group of four. He was an artist 
who had been to Beaux Arts in Paris and had 
just finished a post graduate course in English 
at Harvard. These gentlemen became our 
very good friends and were devoted to us in 
Buenos Aires, introducing their families and 
entertaining us in their homes. 

A rather famous astronomer and his bride 
were going to Cordova, a city in the mountains 
of the Argentine, to have charge of the large' 
observatory situated there. They had been at 
the "Lick" in California. Mrs. R. of Tor- 
onto, Canada, was returning to Rio de Janiero 
with her six months old child, " Jamie," a darl- 
ing baby, who was loved by all the passengers. 
Jamie had not yet seen his father, who met the 
boat at Bahia. 

There were thirty-eight men going to Brazil 
and the Argentine to demonstrate the Inter- 
national Harvesting machines. They were 
typical Western farmers, and I liked them. 
One of them, called " Pop Drayton," was very 
droll. He was first at the table and last to 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 13 

leave, and often remarked, " It's nice to eat as 
long and as much as you want when it doesn't 
cost anything." He was always looking for 
whale, and it was he who called my attention 
to the first one of these very disappointing 
South Atlantic mammals. 

Then there were two theatrical ladies, much 
painted and dyed, much wined and dined, bound 
for Rio, and some civil engineers just out of 
college, going to the Argentine to make their 
fortunes. They told me afterwards that they 
had obtained very good positions a few days 
after their arrival in Buenos Aires. A Baptist 
minister who was a missionary in the interior 
of Argentine, his wife, five kiddies and native 
nurse, returning from their first visit to 
U. S. A. since going out ten years before, and 
a middle aged couple who, gossip whispered, 
were eloping to the wilds of Brazil, also swelled 
the list. But why elope? They looked mat- 
ter of fact and uninteresting enough to have 
just gone. Returning from a visit to New 
York was an elderly couple who had lived for 
years in Rio. They had two most comfortable 
wicker rocking chairs, and if I should ever make 
another voyage, I shall take along just such 
chairs, as we found the ordinary steamer one 
is an abomination. 

There was only one sweet, girlie girl; she 
was from Texas, and was going to Sao Paula 



14 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

to teach in the kindergarten school. I was told 
that she had several proposals of marriage 
before she arrived at Rio de Janeiro. Jeal- 
ousy was rampant amongst the young har- 
vesters. 

August %Nih: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

As I stood on the top deck looking in every 
direction, I had such a feeling of isolation. 
There was not a living thing visible, — just sky 
and sea. I felt as I did when I first saw the 
Rocky Mountains, — how vast, how strong, 
how immovable it was and how insignificant 
seemed the mere atom " man." 

We were always striving to reach that point 
ahead on the horizon, but each day we seemed 
as far from catching up with it as we had been 
the day before. I commenced to realize that 
perhaps my old geography was right, — that 
the earth's surface was composed of one-fourth 
land and three-fourths water; but I never could 
have believed it before. I did not realize how 
much water there could be in the world. 

There was a great deal of conversation about 
the Southern Cross, which we had expected to 
see long before. 

Sunday, August 28th: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

Mr. R., the purser, asked me if I would play 

the hymns for the service which was held in the 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 15 

dining salon on Sunday morning. He read the 
Episcopal morning service and the stewards 
sang the hymns, but the attendance was poor. 
The Baptist minister, I knew, thought it sac- 
rilegious, and held his own service. 

The day had been most delightful, — neither 
hot nor cold, — and the temperature was abso- 
lutely perfect. 

After dinner some of the officers of the ship 
were trying a new device for life saving. They 
threw on the water a life buoy, which was cov- 
ered with a sort of phosphorescent substance, 
emitting a bright light. If a man were to fall 
overboard at night, he could easily see this buoy 
shining in the water, and, swimming for it, 
could soon be rescued. It created considerable 
excitement for a few moments. Many of the 
passengers thought some person had fallen 
overboard. 

J. and I made a visit to the bottom of the 
ship, and when I saw those poor (but wicked 
looking) stokers down there, feeding the mon- 
ster furnaces which made the steam for our 
engines, which never stopped day or night, I 
realized as never before what kept us going. 

August SOth: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

Awakening just before dawn, and feeling 
restless, I arose and looked from the " ports " 
into the night. I could scarcely distinguish 



16 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

between the gray of the sky and the gray of the 
sea. The horizon seemed invisible. I was at- 
tracted by a beautiful star low in the eastern 
sky. It was so large and so brilliant that I 
wondered if it were really only a star ; I won- 
dered if it were possible that somewhere on that 
planet some other mortal might be looking, 
and, in turn, wondering about us. I thought 
of loved ones, — they seemed so far away at 
that moment, — and as my mind ran on I de- 
tected a faint glow of color directly underneath 
this star. She seemed to become clothed in 
raiments of the softest shades of lavender and 
pinkish silver, like a beautiful flower. And 
just then I saw directly underneath this beau- 
tiful morning star a little golden crescent peep- 
ing from the water's edge, and from it the 
burnished rays of light shot upward like arms 
extended in supplication which seemed to say, 
" Dear, radiant lady, I love and adore you. 
I am bringing all my treasure to lay at your 
feet. Be mine ! " But as I looked the cruel 
lady had flown, and I could not see her any 
more; then out burst the sun in such a volume 
of wrath that the horizon became a flame of 
beautiful colors. Higher and higher it rose 
from the water until it hung like a golden ball 
of fire. The entire eastern sky was painted 
with such beauty I think it would have rivaled 
all the fireworks in China, if they could have 



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ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 17 

been exploded at the same moment. It was one 
of the most sublime sights I had ever witnessed. 

We crossed the equator at seven thirty a. m. 
A whistle blew loudly and we knew that 
at that moment we had crossed the line. 
There was not a single jar or unusual motion. 
" The Ceremony of Neptune " was not ob- 
served, owing to the early hour of crossing, but 
I saw it when I returned three months later. 
Father Neptune (the purser) was dressed to 
represent the ancient God of the Waters; he, 
together with his clerks, made a tour of the 
decks and woe to the unfortunate mortal who 
had dared, for the first time, to venture so far 
from home. He was seized, covered with lather 
and plunged into the tank of water which was 
aft, to the great amusement of the other more 
fortunate voyagers who looked on and enjoyed 
his misery. 

The day was wonderful, — one of the most 
pleasant of the entire voyage. We had ex- 
pected that the tar would be oozing from the 
cracks and that one could only breath under- 
neath electric fans ; instead, there was a splen- 
did breeze and a few white caps on the water. 

The sports began the morning we crossed the 
equator. The astronomer, his wife, J. and I 
opened them with a game of deck shuffle board: 
but I must confess I was not very keen about 
it, as there was too much excitement and noise, 



18 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

and we were happy when the captain invited 
us to his cabin. It was always quiet there, 
and his " tea " was much better than the tea 
which was served every afternoon on deck. 

August 31st: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

The water for the bath was colder now than 
it had been before; the currents of water and 
air seemed changed after crossing the equator. 
We saw the first boat that we had seen since 
leaving New York. With the aid of a powerful 
glass we could see that it was a four-masted 
schooner, and it looked very pretty. Every- 
one was very much occupied with the sports; 
the noise and confusion on the decks was 
dreadful. 

In the afternoon J. and I went to the prow 
of the ship. The motion of the boat startled 
the flying fish, which we saw by thousands. 
With the sunlight shining through their gauzy 
wings, they formed a rainbow colored cloud 
on either side. Some flew a great distance; it 
seemed as if they were little birds. 

We did not dress for dinner because the sun- 
set was so unusually beautiful. In the western 
sky there were clouds which resembled a dark 
mountain range ; between the clouds and the 
sea, the sun hung like a huge red ball, and the 
sky was tinted in orange, pink, blue and laven- 
der. As the sun touched the horizon it took 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 19 

the shape of a top; then it looked flat like a 
peach, and when it disappeared it was night. 
The astronomer explained many of the pecu- 
liarities of sunsets in the tropics ; it was very 
interesting. 

September 1st: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

We saw the first land today. By the use of 
glasses we saw the rocky coast of Brazil. But 
I did not want to see land; I did not care to 
catch up with the horizon ; I loved the sea. 
As we neared the Coast of Brazil we did not 
see much of the captain, as he did not leave the 
bridge night or day on account of the difficult 
navigation; the waters were full of rocks and 
all kinds of dangerous places. But we did not 
worry, as we felt sure that we had one of the 
very best captains that ever commanded a ship. 

The sports were positively too noisy for me, 
and I spent the afternoon in my favorite place, 
under a life boat, on a coil of rope. When 
there I felt that there was nothing between me, 
the sky and the sea. 

We saw many whales today. One fought 
with a sword fish; it was a royal battle; they 
thrashed the water high as the boat ; the foam 
was red with blood. The whales were a great 
disappointment. They were not at all my idea 
of what a whale ought to be, and I refused to 
be thrilled by them. I was led to believe that 



20 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

I should see a real whale, but they were only 
imitations. I couldn't see why they were called 
whales ; they looked much more like large por- 
poise. 

We felt quite cosmopolitan today, — we saw 
land, whales, fishes, a shark, some sea gulls and 
two sails. 

September %nd: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

I went with the ship's doctor to see a boy 
who was a student at Yale last year. His 
health had been broken by hard study and he 
thought it would be very beneficial to make a 
voyage to Buenos Aires and return, shipping as 
a sailor before the mast. He had, of course, no 
idea of the life. He was naturally an object of 
scorn among the common sailors, and the of- 
ficers thought he was some rich man's son who 
was doing penance. He had been quite ill, and 
the kind doctor thought if I would go and see 
him it would cheer him up. I found him study- 
ing Calculus and eating his midday meal of 
soup from a greasy tin basin. He refused to 
let us do anything for him, and felt sure that 
he would be much benefited by this unusual 
experience. We discovered that we had many 
mutual acquaintances among the students at 
Yale, and I invited him to dine with us in 
Buenos Aires. I told his story to the captain 
and the first officer, and after that they took 








THE PLUNGE 
CROSSING THE EQUATOR 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 21 

more interest in him. When I saw him in 
Buenos Aires, he said that after that visit the 
sailors called me " the lady of the forecastle." 
The sports were finished today. After din- 
ner the prizes were awarded to the winners. I 
had the honor of presenting them. Everyone 
seemed happy. There was some fine music. 
Commander Y. presented J. with one of his 
prizes as a souvenir and gave me a gold button 
enameled in blue, black and white, the colors of 
the Argentine flag. I wore it in my coat dur- 
ing the ten weeks I lived in the Argentine. 

September 3rd: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

By the aid of glasses we could see the low 
flat buildings of the city of Pernambuco today. 
I was not anxious to land, as I had heard tales 
of the difficulty in getting ashore, — the water 
is very choppy ; the voyager is lowered to the 
small boats by means of a large wicker hamper, 
and is usually well drenched by the waves. 

I saw such a queer boat. The captain said, 

" Come, I will show you the safest boat in 
the world." 

I looked, but I didn't see any boat. I did, 
however, see two men apparently standing on 
the water, and it was not a " miracle." It was 
a " jangoda." Now a jangoda is made by 
fastening several bamboo poles together like a 
raft and there is a small sail attached. The 



22 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

water goes up and down through the poles, and 
if a shark doesn't eat you, or a wave dash you 
off, you are as safe as on dry land, — you can't 
sink or upset. 

The natives, who usually fish with this queer 
looking craft, tie a cocoanut, well greased, to 
the stern of the boat ; the shark tries to swallow 
this and in the meantime he is speared. It 
seemed to me that it might be very exciting, 
but I preferred to fish with a five ounce rod 
and a brown hackle fly, a mountain stream and 
a speckled beauty, rather than with a shark 
and this method. Everyone wondered why we 
had not seen the Southern Cross. 

As on the morrow we were to call at Bahia, 
our first foreign city, many letters were writ- 
ten today. Mail was to be returned from that 
port. The captain said he envied J. and me 
the sensation of putting foot on foreign soil 
for the first time. We were really thrilled with 
expectation. 



BAHIA, BRAZIL 

September 4<th: 

I was so pleased and enchanted with this 
beautiful sunshiny spring day. I felt that 
there were not sufficient adjectives in my 
vocabulary with which to adequately describe 
my sensations upon seeing for the first time a 
foreign city; and it would be difficult to find a 
more curious or interesting one than that of 
the very ancient city of Bahia, situated on the 
eastern coast of northern Brazil. 

The sun was shining brightly on the blue 
water of the bay; there was not a single cloud 
on the beautiful clear sky, which seemed to vie 
with the blue of the water. The bright colors 
of the houses against the vivid green of the 
tropical foliage formed a wonderful painted 
panorama of beauty. All large steamships 
anchor well out in the bay. It seemed so queer 
to feel that we were at last to go on shore and 
walk on real earth. It looked good to me, even 
if it was a foreign earth I was soon to tread 
upon. 

After fourteen days the faithful engines 

stopped, the huge anchor was dropped, and 

our boat was at last still. Almost instantly 
23 



24 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

we were surrounded on every side by small 
boats rowed by queer looking native black men, 
each clamoring for a fare. We could not, 
however, go ashore until that very important 
gentleman, the quarantine officer, had satisfied 
himself that we carried a clean certificate of 
health. He was so very pompous looking in 
his splendid uniform, which was gay with gold 
buttons and braid. 

At last we were permitted to descend that 
long, steep, and, I thought, very dangerous 
looking ladder, and, stepping into a small boat, 
we were rowed to a very dusty landing place. 
I really suffered untold torture all the way to 
shore. The sailors looked very fierce, and I 
fancied they could easily row us to some dark 
spot and murder us for our money, — but 
fortunately no such fate befell us, and, perhaps 
disappointed but still happy, we were permitted 
to land. 

Immediately we were surrounded by a dozen 
men who wanted to sell us " lottery tickets,'* 
— it being the year of the great lottery. 
Money exchanges were also as thick as sharks 
in Pernambuco. If you contemplate a visit to 
Brazil, I advise you to have plenty of their 
money about you. Almost a traged} 7 occurred 
because two of our fellow voyagers who had 
boarded a tram car for a ride into the suburbs 
(or jungle, as they call it) not being able to 



BAHIA, BRAZIL 25 

speak Portuguese and not possessing the 
proper coins, were forcibly ejected from the 
car. If a very kindly English gentleman had 
not happened by on the next car, our friends 
might have been detained until the next boat 
arrived. The fare on a tramway in Bahia was 
500 reis. 

The first thing we did after having our 
money exchanged (the rate of exchange that 
day was about 3%' per cent) was to find the 
telegraph office, which was situated in the post 
office, — a large, very well arranged building a 
short distance from where we landed. After 
sending a cablegram, some post cards and a 
Bahia paper to Col. H., a friend who edits one 
of our daily papers in P., we turned to look 
for a tobacco shop. The first thing we saw 
was a large building, boarded up, with signs in 
French, German, Spanish and English, " Yel- 
low Fever here." We didn't linger long 
enough to read any other than the English 
sign. J. had a fine time shopping; he pur- 
chased all sorts, kinds and forms of Brazilian 
tobacco. Some of the cigarettes which he 
brought home cost triple the original price be- 
fore they had cleared the French and United 
States customs. 

Turning, I met something which held me spell- 
bound, — a native negress was the object. She 
might have weighed 250 pounds or more. Her 



26 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

skin resembled a beautiful piece of bronze. Her 
teeth, as she smiled at my admiring glances, 
looked like pearls. In her ears were large hoop 
earrings of gold. On her bare arms and ankles 
she wore many queer bracelets. Her low cut, 
white bodice was draped with a Roman scarf. 
The skirt resembled a red bandana handkerchief 
and looked many yards in width. Gracefully 
balanced on her head was a large, round, flat 
basket in which she had placed her market, con- 
sisting of a live chicken, a brightly colored fish, 
carrots, endive, and a pot of blooming red 
geraniums. She appealed to my senses as the 
most picturesque object I had ever looked 
upon. We strolled about this lower city, en- 
tering some very old Spanish churches that 
were very odd to me, as they were the first ones 
I had ever seen which did not contain pews. 
The hard, cold and not very clean looking floor 
to kneel upon did not satisfy my idea of clean- 
liness and godliness, etc. There were the usual 
beggars at the door and very pitiful they 
looked, — but then, one could afford to toss 
them a few reis, as there were so many reis in 
a dime. 

Bahia consists of two cities; the older or 
lower city, and the newer or upper one. We 
took a very modern " lift " and soon found our- 
selves at the top, in a very pretty plaza. A 
band was discoursing some music, and people 



BAHIA, BRAZIL &7 

were walking about or sitting on benches. It 
was one of those warm, balmy days we some- 
times enjoy towards the end of March or first 
of April. We saw some very well dressed and 
very good looking people. The little children 
were usually pretty. Many of the houses fac- 
ing this plaza were handsome, modern struc- 
tures. I saw a very droll looking milkman ; he 
drove his cow and little calf to the door of his 
customer, and then and there proceeded to de- 
liver the goods at first hand to the customer. 

As we drove through the narrow streets we 
saw at the open latticed windows (on the sill 
of which there was invariably standing a pot of 
red geraniums) beautiful, dark-eyed Senoritas. 
In their glossy black hair they wore a red rose ; 
many were holding in their arms little babies 
which were perfectly devoid of clothing. They 
looked like little bronze cherubs. The blossom- 
ing shrubs and trees in the gardens sent out 
their sweet perfume. Some of the houses had 
their entire fronts built of mosaics laid in pat- 
terns of flowers and figures. They appeared 
very odd to us. The shops we visited were well 
stocked with a variety of merchandise, but we 
observed that they were not well or attractively 
arranged. The clerks were courteous, but 
could not speak English. 

I had heard of the curious dolls which were 
made by the sisters in one of the convents of 



28 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

Bahia. I purchased one which pleased me very 
much. It was made entirely of brown cotton 
material; the eyes, nose and mouth were per- 
fectly formed by small beads; the hands were 
encased in a queer shaped muff; the dress was 
blue and black check; a fine lace scarf was 
crossed about the bosom and an apron of simi- 
lar material was worn ; on the head was a queer 
head dress of the same color as the muff; its 
earrings were of solid silver, as was also the sil- 
ver chain of very tiny links on its neck. I paid 
10,000 reis for this work of art. I was so 
proud of my lady. Alas ! she almost met a 
watery grave. On climbing the long ladder 
when returning to the ship I dropped her into 
the sea, but one of the gallant Argentine gentle- 
men rescued her with my parasol. Now we call 
Senor S-P " Our Hero." 

While everyone was at dinner Commander Y. 
asked us to " Come on deck at once," and there 
he pointed out the long looked for Southern 
Cross hanging in the heavens, — so wonderful 
and so plainly visible, — which the night before 
could not be seen. It was so very kind of him 
to want J. and me to see it before the other 
passengers. I can never, never forget the 
thrill I felt on seeing that Cross ; something 
which one from the Northern Hemisphere can 
never see unless he has crossed the equator. 
He told us that the Argentine sailors almost 




DELIVERING MILK AND CHICKENS 
BAHIA, BRAZIL 



BAHIA, BRAZIL 29 

worshipped it. I was sure we were enthusias- 
tic enough to please and repay him for his kind- 
ness. It was certainly exciting to see both the 
Cross and Bahia within twenty-four hours. 

Everyone is interested in the father of our 
baby, " Jamie R.," who came from Rio to Ba- 
hia to meet for the first time his little son. The 
captain gave a small supper in his cabin in his 
honor, and when we said " Good night," the 
captain, sniffing the air, remarked " Fog to- 



RIO DE JANEIRO 

September 6th: 

I have been told by the captain that the bay 
of Rio de Janeiro was by far the most beautiful 
in the whole world, and he should know, having 
visited all of them. 

It was the greatest disappointment when we 
saw on awakening that the fog was hanging 
over everything; but by the time we were an- 
chored in the bay, it had lifted sufficiently for 
us to see unfolded before us a magnificent pano- 
rama of color and scenery. The bay was 
thickly dotted with rocky islands rising 
abruptly hundreds of feet above us. One was 
so pointed it was called the " Needle." A sol- 
dier climbed to its summit each morning and 
evening and raised or lowered the Brazilian 
flag. It looked like an impossibility for any 
human being to perform this difficult feat. 

A fine stone wall girded the bay, which was 
a perfect semi-circle. Back of it was a fine 
boulevard, facing which were the splendid villas 
of the wealthy Brazilians. These houses pre- 
sented a variety of color (all the houses in Rio 

seemed to have been painted in bright colors), 
30 



RIO DE JANEIRO 31 

and back of all this was seen the great moun- 
tain, Corcovado. 

In the bay near us we saw some of the Brazil- 
ian battleships, many large vessels from every 
port of the world, a private yacht once owned 
by John Jacob Astor, flying the Stars and 
Stripes, — they looked good to us. Everyone 
was anxious to go ashore. The ship expected 
to remain in this port two days and we decided 
to sleep on land that night. First the quaran- 
tine doctors examined our ship, and then the 
customs officers went through the luggage of 
the passengers who disembarked at Rio. 
Everything was displayed on deck ; even the 
theatrical make-up of the " gay ladies " was 
not spared. The luggage was then shouldered 
by strong Brazilian porters and carried down a 
long ladder to small row boats in which it was 
taken ashore. 

When at last we were permitted to land, we 
did so in a private launch owned by one of our 
fellow voyagers. At the end of a short walk 
up a very narrow street which was lined with 
attractive looking shops we came to the Ave- 
nida Central, the finest street in Rio de Janeiro, 
which had been built only a few years. It cost 
several million dollars. Entire blocks of houses 
were destroyed and several streets removed in 
order to create this splendid thoroughfare. On 
it fine modern buildings were erected, and from 



32 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

one of these we saw flying our good U. S. A. 
flag. It was our consulate. 

The pavements of this avenida are the talk 
of every visitor who comes to Rio de Janeiro; 
each block is paved in a different pattern of 
beautiful mosaics. In front of the cafes men 
sat at small tables drinking coffee and vermuth. 
Beautiful carriages passed, drawn by diminu- 
tive teams of mules, wearing gold mounted har- 
nesses. Each mule had a soft sounding, tin- 
kling little bell on his head. Seated in these 
carriages were beautifully gowned ladies and 
well dressed gentlemen. Splendid automobiles 
dashed here and there, and the whole street pre- 
sented a gay, cosmopolitan scene. We saw 
hundreds of public conveyances, mostly drawn 
by mules wearing those same little tinkling bells. 
The vehicles were two wheeled; the seat was 
wide enough for three persons, the driver sitting 
a little in front of " his fare." They were not 
uncomfortable, — we tried them, — but before 
starting, you had better drive a sharp bargain 
with the cochero as to the price, for the cocheros 
are not reliable. Even then an argument seems 
useless, as Brazilian Portuguese is not a uni- 
versally spoken language. 

We called on our consul, Mr. L., — a very de- 
lightful gentleman, — who gave J. the informa- 
tion which he wished to obtain. I purchased 
some Brazilian music which I had heard the 



RIO DE JANEIRO 33 

" composer " play on board the Vasari. One 
was a tango, which I have found to be very 
popular with my family. The money exchange 
was very high here, higher than it was in Bahia 
two days before. 

It being lunch time, we stopped at a very 
popular cafe situated on the Avenida Central, in 
front of which many street car lines made their 
terminal. If you visit Rio, do eat at least one 
meal at this place. It is called " The Franzis- 
hauser Cafe." One of the most delicious things 
I ever ate was the " camerones " (very little 
shrimps), which was one of their specialties. 
They were served on a green bed of finely shred- 
ded lettuce leaves covered with mayonnaise. 
We enjoyed other delicious dishes, but the cam- 
erones were the best I had ever tasted, and the 
coffee was the only really good coffee I drank 
during my six months of travel. 

At this place we took a tram car which took 
us directly to our hotel. There are two fine 
hotels in Rio de Janeiro ; " The National," 
which is situated a distance from the city near 
the foot of the famous Corcovado Mountain; 
and " The Dos Estrangeous," in the heart of 
the city. We chose the latter. On our arrival 
there we were told that they had one clerk who 
spoke English " as she is spek." We found his 
English very deficient, but efficient enough to 
enable us to engage a room. He conducted us 



34 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

through a beautifully enclosed court or garden, 
with flowers, birds and a fountain, and showed 
us a room facing this enchanted place. But the 
room was the strangest one I had ever seen; 
there were no rugs on the bare floors, no mat- 
tress on the bed, nothing on the washstand. I 
had read of some one traveling, perhaps in Rus- 
sia, who was obliged to furnish his own bedding, 
etc., — and I wondered! But we couldn't argue 
" in English as she is spek," so we engaged this 
room, agreeing to pay forty-six thousand reis 
for one day's lodging and board for two people, 
trusting that Providence would provide the 
missing necessities. 

We engaged a carriage and started for a 
drive through that enchanted city of Rio de 
Janeiro and were delighted with everything that 
met our vision. The plaster houses seemed or- 
iginally to have been painted green, blue, pink 
and yellow, and the roofs were red tile ; but time 
and climate had softened these colors into beau- 
tiful pastel shades, and covered the red tile 
roofs with a green mossy mould, which formed 
a picture of rare color. The houses were one 
story, seldom more than two ; the ceilings were 
high; and all the houses had tall latticed win- 
dows which were opened wide to the sunlight. 
(I was afterwards informed that the moment the 
sun shone into Rio everything possible was ex- 
posed to the air and sunshine, because of the 



RIO DE JANEIRO 35 

moist climate.) Almost every house possessed 
an enclosed garden and a royal palm. We saw 
an avenue of these beautiful trees, many over a 
hundred feet in height. Their silver gray 
trunks were smooth as marble columns, and at 
the very top there was a feather-like foliage 
wafted to and fro by the breeze. There were 
many of these splendid trees scattered through 
the city, and they, together with the soft colors 
of the houses, the high rocky islands dotting the 
blue waters of the bay, and the beautiful Corco- 
vado in the background, all combined to form a 
picture of beauty so sublime and inspiring it 
would be impossible to convey by pen the de- 
light one felt in seeing it. 

We drove in the Botanical Garden, where we 
saw a great variety of palms, orchids, plants 
and trees in profusion, some very queer looking 
water fowl on the small lakes, and beautiful, 
bright colored birds singing in the trees. 
Lovely, dark-eyed children with their nurses 
were playing there, and many interesting people 
passed in their carriages. A ride to Silvester 
on the tramway was delightful ; the road follows 
a very old and abandoned water viaduct. It 
was built of plaster, and time had made it green 
with mould; orchids and flowering vines almost 
covered it ; squirrels and birds ran and flew 
about ; the beautiful trees arched overhead ; and 
nestled close to the sides of the mountain here 



36 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

and there were picturesque villas almost buried 
in flowers. On looking down, one caught a 
glimpse of the city and the blue waters of the 
bay. The side of this mountain was covered 
with lavender, pink and yellow flowering trees. 
We saw poinsettia trees with blossoms over a 
foot across, and there were many tropical 
plants such as one sees in our conservatories. 
We found it impossible to attempt to go to the 
top of the Corcovado, as the clouds and mist 
lay all day between its summit and us. 

Returning to our apartments in " The Dos 
Estrangeous," we found to our delight and sat- 
isfaction that a wonderful transformation had 
taken place. Spotless linen covered comfort- 
able looking beds ; the washstand had many 
earthen pitchers closely covered. (The pitch- 
ers are covered in order to keep out the lizards 
and bugs which visit one during the night.) 
These vessels contained clear, soft water. 
There was a plentiful supply of towels. Soft 
rugs now covered the bare floors, and flowers 
had been placed about the room in vases. The 
change was very pleasing. 

The dinner was excellent, — quite as good as 
one would have at the best hotel in our country, 
— but when we saw that champagne was twelve 
thousand reis it seemed like such a large sum 
of money that we compromised with our con- 
science by trying to order a Scotch highball. 



RIO DE JANEIRO 37 

After apparently hours of talk and seemingly 
yards of gesticulation, if a very kindly but very 
much amused Englishman had not come to our 
rescue and explained to the bewildered waiter 
just what we wished, I am sure we should still be 
waiting for it. 

We had hoped to see the city by night, but 
instead we were treated to a tropical storm. I 
had never heard such loud crashes of thunder, 
which followed one another in rapid succession ; 
the flashes of lightning illuminated the sky and 
the rain fell in torrents, much like a cloudburst. 
I had always enjoyed a thunder storm, but for 
the first time in my life I was frightened. I 
have no desire to witness another storm like 
that. Being unable to venture out, we amused 
ourselves by writing letters and watching the 
people at a reception given at our hotel. They 
were very good looking and handsomely attired. 
Men, as well as women, embraced each other. 
They first kissed the forehead, then each cheek, 
the chin, and lastly the mouth. Their voices 
sounded soft and musical. They were not very 
large of stature, and their black eyes were won- 
derfully expressive and sweet. It seemed good 
to sleep ashore that night, — the first time in 
more than two weeks. 

The next morning I was awakened by the 
sweet singing of the beautifully colored little 
birds which were flying in and out of our open 



38 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

latticed windows. I heard the singing, smelled 
the sweet perfume of the flowers, and heard the 
trickle of the water in the fountain; and I 
thought perhaps I had died and this was Para- 
dise. But all this lovely sensation was rudely 
broken by a knock at the door, and a sullen 
looking native servant entered with my coffee 
and rolls. When I had finished, I rang for her 
and gave her the very largest piece of that 
strange looking coin which J. had left on the 
table. I heard her throw it angrily on the floor 
of the hall, and surmising something did not 
please her, I called her back and handed her all 
I had. After selecting several pieces she smiled 
sweetly, and said " Gracias, Senora." I dis- 
covered that I had given her only a reis, one- 
fifth of a cent. She had taken twenty cents. 

I found J. having an interview with Prof. 
Darby, the State Geologist of Brazil. He had 
lived in Brazil many years, and told us many 
interesting facts relating to the progress of the 
country. We were delighted when we discov- 
ered we had mutual friends at Cornell, his Alma 
Mater. 

Some friends whom we met on the Vasari took 
us in their automobile for a long drive around 
the city. They showed us the beautiful Opera 
House, the " Monroe Palace," which was built 
at St. Louis for the Fair, a fine university, some 
splendid public buildings and a small " Coney 



RIO DE JANEIRO 39 

Island." This gentleman was connected with 
the company which supplied Rio de Janeiro 
with water, gas, electric light and the tram- 
ways, and it was interesting to hear how suc- 
cessful the company had been. It was a na- 
tional holiday. We saw the soldiers and sailors 
marching through the streets. 

The policemen were droll. They were very 
diminutive, and their uniforms rarely fitted. 
They seemed to have been made for larger men. 
The policemen wore white spats, gloves and hel- 
mets, and stood very fierce and erect. Our 
friends took us to the Vasari in their launch, 
and at six o'clock we sailed away from Rio just 
as the gun boats were firing a salute. Looking 
back we saw thousands of electric lights hung 
in festoons along the boulevard which skirts the 
bay. I never expect to see another city so en- 
chantingly beautiful. 



SANTOS, BRAZIL 

September *7th: Santos, Brazil. 

When we awoke and looked from our ports 
we saw that the ship had entered the river which 
leads up to Santos, that great coffee port of 
Brazil. Along the shores we saw the ruins of 
ancient forts; they were curious looking. We 
saw many narrow streams of water running far 
back between thickly wooded mountains. They 
made us shudder, because not so many years 
ago, I was told, dreadful pirates hid themselves 
here where they could easily rush out and attack 
the richly laden vessels, murder the crew, seize 
their gold and dash back again into their hiding 
places. What if there were still some pirates ! 
As we neared the city we saw handsome villas 
along the river's side. Soon we were firmly tied 
to the splendid wharf more than a mile in 
length. There were other vessels from every 
part of the world also stationed along its side, 
each waiting for its cargo of coffee. 

The captain told us that not very many years 

ago this was the most deadly port in the world ; 

that as soon as his boat was anchored he sent 

his crew into the mountains to stay until he was 
40 



SANTOS, BRAZIL 41 

ready to sail again. But now this splendid 
wharf had been built at a great expense, the 
ground had been drained, the streets paved in 
stone blocks, and the city quite as healthy as 
one could expect in this part of the world. 

Some of these vessels were crowded with Ital- 
ian and Spanish people going to the Argentine. 
Many of the top decks of the boats resembled 
a grassy green meadow; they were piled high 
with bunches of green bananas. I saw a group 
of Turks who were wearing their native cos- 
tume. The Turkish women were carrying all 
the luggage, consisting of great white bundles, 
and some had huge cages containing green par- 
rots which were making a great deal of noise. 
The men walked leisurely along, smoking long 
pipes and kicking the women from time to time 
if they did not move fast enough to suit their 
Turkships. 

Our first day in Santos was a holy-day and 
the streets seemed deserted. From our ship we 
saw men, women and children ascending and de- 
scending a mountain directly back of the city, 
on the summit of which, about five hundred feet 
above the city, stood a shrine. It was said to 
contain most miraculous relics which cured 
everything, lameness, blindness, deafness and 
dumbness. All the people made this journey 
once a year. 

It was quite easy to go ashore. As our boat 



42 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

stood close beside the great wharf, we had only 
to cross the gang plank and go through the 
great iron gate, and we were directly in the 
main portion of the city. As we strolled along 
the deserted streets we saw some very substan- 
tial, if not ornamental, buildings, mostly one 
story. The streets were well paved. The cof- 
fee exchange was the most pretentious building, 
and we were told there was much speculation on 
the rise and fall of the coffee market. There 
were some German, English and French, but 
no United States banks, a large public square 
with a fine postoffice building, and a handsome 
looking hospital. I was told that it was well 
equipped and managed. 

At this square or plaza we boarded a tramcar 
which took us to the sea side. On the way, we 
passed beautiful villas with lovely gardens ; an 
English Country Club, where we saw good 
looking, well dressed people playing tennis, 
cricket and golf; and a splendid German Club. 
Arriving at the sea shore, we saw people bath- 
ing on a smooth, sandy beach. 

Returning by another line of tram cars, we 
passed through the wild jungle. There we saw 
monkeys hanging in the trees, and parrots and 
birds of beautiful plumage. There were some 
very curious looking huts on the sides of the 
steep hills along the way. As we neared the 
city, we passed a funeral cortege. There were 



SANTOS, BRAZIL 43 

no women in the procession. The men carried 
a casket which, I was told, was hired and was 
used only to carry the body to the cemetery. 
The men, who were dressed in black with purple 
sashes, were walking two by two, chanting a 
funeral dirge. I don't think I should care to 
live or die in Santos. 

From the ship we could see a fine wireless sta- 
tion. I was told that the Germans owned and 
controlled most of the wireless stations on the 
four thousand miles or more of Brazilian coast. 
There seemed to be more Germans in Santos 
than any other nationality of foreigners. 

On our return voyage to Europe we met Herr 
G., a German baron, and his wife, who were per- 
fectly charming. They had a home in Santos 
and one in Hamburg. He was said to control 
the coffee market of the world. He told us the 
company he represented shipped several mil- 
lion sacks of coffee yearly, each weighing 1£5 
pounds. He also told us that he was now using 
many auto trucks instead of mule teams, and 
expected next year to use the motor entirely. 

The Baroness G. was fascinating. She spoke 
English fluently, was quite young and perfectly 
beautiful. One day she invited J. and me to 
come to her cabin, and there she showed us co- 
coons which crystallized before our very eyes 
into the most gorgeous colored butterflies I had 
ever seen. She had collected and mounted sev- 



U A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

eral thousand specimens of butterflies. She 
told me about her life in Santos ; how much she 
loved it ; and that she often spent hours collect- 
ing her specimens. She said that the little 
humming birds were very tame and flew in and 
out of the houses, and that each day she drove 
in her dog cart on the hard, sandy beach. 
Their children, however, were kept in Germany, 
the climate of Santos being unhealthy for chil- 
dren. 

September 8th: Santos, Brazil. 

I was awakened by hearing a j argon of voices 
outside our cabin. I looked from the ports, 
which, by the way, we were obliged to keep 
tightly locked during our call at Santos and at 
every other port because the wharf rats had a 
long pole at the end of which was a hook, and 
they had a way of helping themselves to any- 
thing which they could find hookable. From 
the ports I saw hundreds of strange human be- 
ings, wearing such queer costumes. On their 
heads they had queer, brightly colored caps 
which hung down over their necks and backs, 
and gay Roman sashes around their waists ; 
they wore all sorts of slippers and shoes, and 
some even were barefooted. Each seemed to 
speak a different tongue. On their heads and 
backs they were carrying bags of coffee, and one 
after the other they passed all day like a stream 



a 

K 
Z 

w 

> 

r 
o 

o 

H 
E 

O 
> 




SANTOS, BRAZIL 45 

of ants, loading the holds of these great vessels 
which were to carry the coffee to every portion 
of the world, bringing cheer and comfort to our 
breakfast tables. 

Captain C. told us that no voyage was com : 
plete unless one made a pilgrimage to the shrine. 
J. refused to be interested, but I arose at 6 
a. m. and after some coffee and toast, we, the 
captain and I, started out for what proved to 
be one of the most difficult walks I had ever ac- 
complished. The path up the mountain had 
been rendered slippery by the tread of so many 
feet the day before, and the heavy tropical 
dew had not improved it. We were obliged to 
take three steps forward and slide back two. 
All along the way bananas grew in profusion; 
there were ripe oranges and sugar cane, beauti- 
ful tropical plants such as one sees in our con- 
servatories and sweet scented flowers. Pretty 
little birds and beautifully tinted butterflies 
flew around our faces, and gay colored lizards 
and little green snakes glided over our feet. 
The heat, even at this early hour, was intense. 
When at length we arrived at the summit we 
found a small wooden chapel. It had a mud 
floor and on the wall hung waxed replicas of the 
noses, ears, eyes, toes, fingers and what not 
which had been so miraculously healed by the 
magic relics; but I thought that any one who 
could climb that wicked, slippery mountain 



46 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

path surely deserved to be rewarded. Father 
Schmidt, who lived there, told us that he too 
came from Pennsylvania. 

After breakfast J. and I walked about the 
town, observed the bustle around the coffee ex- 
change, entered several of the large banks, and 
made a few small purchases at a very attractive 
jewelry shop. We watched the long rows of 
mule teams, each with a tinkling bell, drawing 
huge loads of bags filled with coffee from the 
enormous warehouses to the loading places on 
the wharf. We spent some time in the Bamboo 
Park. It was called the Bamboo Park because 
it contained an avenue of these trees, which were 
united at the height of twelve or more feet and 
formed a tunnel through which one could walk. 
It was very pretty and unique. We watched 
a very droll little animal about the size of a 
gray squirrel. It had a very sharply pointed 
nose and a funny long tail, and it moved 
strangely. When it wished to go to the next 
tree it caught a branch by winding its long 
tail around it, much as one would grasp a stick 
with one's hand; then, after due deliberation, 
away he went like a measuring worm, tail first, 
into the next tree. We watched this one for a 
long time, thinking he might be only reversing, 
but he invariably followed this method of travel. 
We heard the whistle blow loudly, and we knew 
it was time to return to the Vasari. 



SANTOS, BRAZIL 47 

But what consternation awaited us ! J. was 
at once asked if he thought he could " stoke." 
The same question was demanded of every man 
aboard. Our stokers stood on the wharf and 
sullenly refused to come aboard. On the high 
seas, before we arrived at Bahia, the engineer 
had discovered that the sacks or bags of lug- 
gage that each stoker was permitted to bring 
aboard the Vasari at New York contained not 
only luggage or clothing for themselves, but 
playing cards and suspenders which they hoped 
to smuggle into B. A. The Brazilian Govern- 
ment was notified at Bahia; everything was 
seized by the authorities at Santos ; the ship 
was fined ; and naturally the stokers were furi- 
ous and absolutely refused to stoke. For more 
than an hour it looked as if each man would 
be obliged to take his turn at stoking. But at 
last one stoker crossed, and by and by another, 
and then they all walked over the gang plank 
and we were off. A severe tropical storm vis- 
ited us before we entered the open sea. 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 

September 11th: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

We were now nearing our journey's end. 
One more day and night and we should reach 
Montevideo. The day after we left Santos was 
dark, wet and gloomy; the sea was heavy and 
looked muddy. Most of our passengers did 
not appear on deck that day. Every one I saw 
was in a bad humor and I sat alone on deck, 
wrapped in steamer coat and rug, which for the 
first time since sailing I found necessary. As 
I sat dreaming, a request came from the cap- 
tain that we should join him in his cabin for a 
cup of tea. To this J. and I gladly acceded, 
but even the captain was in a very bad temper 
because the kettle was too long boiling. Just 
as our spirits were being revived by the de- 
licious beverage the ship's doctor entered and 
calmly announced, 

" He is dead." 

With the addition of a few strong words the 
captain said, 

" He died of heart failure? " 

" Yes," replied the meek little doctor. 

Turning to me the captain said, 

48 



ABOARD THE S. S. VASARI 49 

" Since you know what has happened you 
may see this man buried if you wish." 

It was a great struggle between the horror 
and the curiosity of seeing a man buried at sea. 
Besides J. and I there was not a person aboard 
who knew about it except the captain and his 
men. At ten o'clock a steward conducted us 
aft. The steerage was tightly closed. The 
body of this poor Spanish immigrant had been 
washed and clothed and had been weighted and 
sewed up in a gunny sack ; a string had been 
tied about its neck, waist and feet. Only a dim 
light, swayed by the gale which was blowing 
the spray over the deck, hung over the head of 
the purser, who reverently read the Episcopal 
service for the burial of those who die at sea. 
The body had been placed on a plank which 
rested on the rail of the deck and some boxes of 
the same height, and the British flag had been 
placed over it. The wind and waves beat a per- 
fect funeral dirge to the voice of the purser. 
When he came to the sentence, " We consign this 
body to the deep," the captain said, " Wait," 
and word was passed to the engineer, who 
stopped the engines a moment; the plank was 
raised and all was over. 

September IQth: Aboard the S. S. Vasari. 

The day being dark and the sea very heavy, 
again many of our fellow voyagers did not ap- 



50 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

pear on deck. On the morrow we would arrive 
at Montevideo, and the following day we hoped 
to arrive at Buenos Aires. Summer clothing 
had to be replaced with warmer garments and 
furs taken from boxes in the hold. I felt sad 
to think our delightful voyage was so soon to 
be terminated. 



MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY 

September 13th: Montevideo, Uruguay. 

The land we saw this morning was Uruguay, 
and the city was Montevideo. Back of the city 
there was a mountain and on the top of this 
mountain stood a fine fort, which we could see 
from the ship. We landed at a splendid stone 
wharf erected at a cost of $11,000,000, and 
judging by the distance we walked to reach the 
end and find a carriage, I thought it might have 
cost more. The city seemed deserted. On 
many of the cross streets as far as one could 
see, not a vehicle, man, woman, or child was 
visible. We drove to the seaside, where there 
was a splendid casino, several fine hotels and 
many handsome villas. The bathing beach 
looked good. 

Returning to the city, we entered the cathe- 
dral, which was very fine, — one of the finest in 
South America. We saw the Grand Opera 
House, in which, I was told, many of the best 
opera singers had appeared, — Tetrazzini, Ca- 
ruso, and many others having sung there be- 
fore coming to the United States. There were 
plazas on which fine monuments had been 
erected, but the buildings were mostly one story 
and not especially attractive. There were a 
51 



52 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

great many shops which traded in the cut and 
uncut precious stones that were found in Uru- 
guay. 

I was told that the society in Montevideo was 
quite the most aristocratic of any city in South 
America. The old Spanish families could trace 
their lineage direct to the nobility of Spain. 
There was also a very exclusive set in the Eng- 
lish colonies. 

We saw a very queer thing in one of the 
streets, — in fact, it could be seen at some dis- 
tance ; it was a very large red brick house, with 
a mansard roof and a cupola on top ; the win- 
dows were broken and it presented a look of 
decay. The house was built by an Irishman 
who lived in Montevideo some years ago, and 
for some reason had never been finished. It 
was called " O'Brien's Folly." 

In the central plaza of the city, the " Grand 
Hotel " was situated. Here we partook of a 
delicious luncheon. This cafe was famous for 
its " ravioles " and they surely were one of the 
most toothsome dishes I had ever eaten. They 
seemed to be about an inch square, made of 
biscuit and stuffed with finely minced, highly 
seasoned beef, served in rich meat gravy. 
Don't fail to have some when you dine at the 
" Grand Hotel " in Montevideo. 

We had as our guest the captain, and dur- 
ing the luncheon a very handsome young Span- 



MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY 53 



ish gentleman came to our table and inquired 
if there was a gentleman on board the Vasari 
who was an " oil and gas engineer." This very 
agreeable young man had come a night's voy- 
age by boat to meet us. He knew that my hus- 
band could not speak Spanish. He repre- 
sented the company for whom J. had come to 
South America. It was the first but not the 
last instance of the kindness and courtesy 
which these South American people, at much 
expense and trouble, show their friends from 
the United States. If our country would in- 
struct the men it sends down there in the same 
sort of politeness, it would be found to their 
advantage. 

On our return to the boat we saw some old 
women selling sweet scented violets which were 
beautiful. We took all the violets they had in 
their large flat baskets. They were very fra- 
grant but of the single variety and of a very 
dark shade. 

That night J. and I gave a supper for some 
friends we had met on the voyage and I pre- 
sented the Sefior with a medal which I had made 
for him. He had been called the " Hero " ever 
since that day in Bahia when he rescued from 
the sea the beautiful doll, which I had just pur- 
chased. Everyone drank to the health of the 
captain and to good fortune for the Argentine 
Navy. 



BUENOS AIRES 

September 14*th: Buenos Aires. 

All was bustle and confusion this morning. 
When we awoke we found that our boat was 
slowly making its way up the Plate River. It 
was not so muddy as I had expected it to be ; it 
was very wide and looked like a great sea in- 
stead of a river. As we gazed on the land of 
the Argentine for the first time we were thrilled 
because we were about to enter a new country, 
with strange people and customs. We did not, 
to our knowledge, know but one person there, 
and that gentleman we had only met once, some 
years ago, at a dinner given in our own city. 

I saw some frost on the roofs of the houses, 
and the day was gray and cold. Furs seemed 
very comfortable. All our lovely, idle, dreamy 
days passed under tropical suns on the blue sea 
were over. The great anchor was dropped and 
we were at the end of our long voyage. It was 
with regret that we thought of leaving the good 
ship Vasari. Stern realities of life faced us. 
From the boat we saw the tall building of the 
" Plaza Hotel," the place we had selected for our 
home during our visit to Buenos Aires. 
54 



BUENOS AIRES 55 

There were many large ships lying in this 
" Dartsefia Norte." From their masts flew the 
flags of almost every country. Great iron 
cranes were loading and unloading their cargos. 
Long rows of great bonded ware houses lined the 
wharf. The customs officers kept us waiting, 
the racing horses of Major C. being the subject 
of much controversy. 

We could see on the dock many friends of our 
fellow voyagers, eager to welcome them, and it 
made us sad to think we had no friends in this 
far away country who would welcome us. 

At last we went ashore. We had no trouble 
with the customs, because our friend, Senor P., 
had arranged everything. His car awaited our 
arrival and we very soon found ourselves at the 
door of our hotel, and here again his good 
French assisted us with the room clerk, who was 
a Frenchman. 

After looking at several suites I selected one 
on the sixth floor, consisting of a sitting, dress- 
ing, bath and bed room. They looked very at- 
tractive with English chintz, brightly colored 
covers, soft blue silk draperies and light gray 
carpets. The casement windows opened on to 
small iron balconies which I enjoyed very much 
during my visit, because from these windows I 
had a fine view of the city. I could see the 
Grand Opera House, the beautiful palaces which 
faced the San Martin Plaza, on which our hotel 



56 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

was situated, the tall palms which lined the 
Corso in Palermo Park, and in the distance even 
the waters of the great, sea-like Plate River. 
The Plaza Hotel was one of the Ritz-Carleton 
chain of hotels which always assure one of com- 
fort, whether in Africa, Europe, Asia or Amer- 
ica. 

In the afternoon, Senor P., our new friend, 
took us for a drive through the city and we 
drove on the famous Corso, which was lined on 
either side with tall palm trees. This was where 
the beauty and wealth of B. A. congregated and 
drove up and down, turning and passing and 
repassing the same people many times. The 
fashionable hours were from four to six in the 
afternoon. We invited Senor P. to dine with 
us at 8 o'clock. The dining room presented a 
very gay scene ; it was a splendid room, bright 
with electric lights, flowers and music. At- 
tractive looking ladies and gentlemen from all 
parts of the world, in evening dress, were dining 
at this hour. I was glad I had worn my most 
attractive dinner gown. 

This new friend, Senor P., was one of the 
handsomest young men we met in South Amer- 
ica, tall and graceful, with black eyes and hair 
and an olive complexion, and the most charming 
personality. He told us he was between 27 and 
28 years old. I wish for a daughter to intro- 
duce to him. We discovered that his father 



BUENOS AIRES 57 

was of noble Spanish ancestry ; that he had been 
minister from Colombia, South America, to 
Washington, had been educated in the U. S. A. 
and in Bogota ; and had been connected with the 
embassies at London and Washington. 

September 15th: Buenos Aires. 

Waking very early, we had breakfast served 
in our sitting room,. The sun was shining 
brightly, so we decided to take a walk down the 
Florida, that very popular avenue which seemed 
to begin at our hotel and run directly south to 
the Avenido de Mayo. The walks on this street 
were so narrow one was obliged to step into the 
street when passing. From four until seven 
p. m. this avenue was closed to all vehicles, and 
every person walked in the middle of the street. 

We passed the Jockey Club, a very handsome 
building, well known all over the world for the 
wealth of its members. It controlled the horse 
racing in Buenos Aires. On this avenue I saw 
a sign which read " North American Bar." 
The owner of this bar, we were told, had made 
over two million pesos in a year by serving 
American mixed drinks and sandwiches. 

There were a number of branch houses bear- 
ing the names of the most famous couturieres of 
Paris, and their windows displayed most attrac- 
tive models. I was told that the very finest and 
most expensive gowns were sold to and worn by 



58 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

the ladies of Buenos Aires. In the jewelry 
shops we saw beautiful works of art attractively 
arranged. 

In the afternoon the Argentine friends we 
had met on the Vasari called on us. They were 
accompanied by different members of their fami- 
lies whom they wished to present to us. I 
found them very charming and they all invited 
us for dinner or tea within the week. Com- 
mander Y., whose family was in Switzerland, 
brought an uncle and a brother navy officer who 
took us in their motor car for a ride around the 
city. We visited one of the exhibition build- 
ings of the " Centennial Fair," which was being 
held this year in B. A. Some flying machines 
which we saw interested us all very much. 
There were many other objects of interest dis- 
plaj^ed in this same building. We drove up 
and down the Corso and stopped at the Jockey 
Club, where we had some refreshments. The in- 
terior of this club was magnificent. It con- 
tained many fine works of art and in every 
apartment the furnishings were very rich and in 
perfect taste. This club was the pride of every 
Argentine's heart. These gentlemen all spoke 
English fluently and were very interesting. 

Commander Y. was very proud of his city, 
and he had reason to be. We left the car at the 
Jockey Club, and joined the gay throng of men 



BUENOS AIRES 59 

and women, walked down the Florida in the mid- 
dle of the street, which was brilliantly lighted 
with many electric lights, to the Avenido de 
Mayo. This wide, splendid street was a bril- 
liant sight, being a blaze of light on either side, 
there was also a row of lights down the center. 
Here we found our motor waiting and in a short 
time returned to our hotel, delighted with every- 
thing we had seen. The uncle of Commander Y. 
invited us for dejeuner the next day at 12 m. 

September 16th: Buenos Aires 

Commander Y. came for us about 11 :30 a. 
m. First we called at the Army and Navy 
Club, situated on the Florida not a great dis- 
tance from the Jockey Club. It contained very 
interesting trophies, among which was the beau- 
tiful piece of bronze which the French nation 
had presented to the brave Argentine Navy of- 
ficers who rescued their expedition to the South 
Pole a few years ago, one of whom was our 
friend. There were some fine portraits of 
famous navy officers and many other objects of 
interest. 

It was but a few minutes' ride from the Navy 
Club to the home of Senor C, whose guests we 
were to be for luncheon (we should call it, but 
they call it breakfast). I had been entertained 
in some beautiful homes in my own country, but 



60 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

I had never seen any which could compare with 
this magnificent home. I have since been told 
that it is considered one of the most perfectly 
appointed in B. A. 

The house was built of gray stone, with or- 
nate finishings, and from the iron balconies hung 
pink flowering geraniums. On entering a beau- 
tiful bronze door, a short flight of marble steps 
brought us to the hall, — a room with marble 
columns and beautiful palms and statues, where 
hanging against dark red velvet walls, were the 
portraits of his Spanish ancestors. The library 
opened from this towards the front of the house. 
It had light woodwork which was inlaid with 
rosewood. The book cases which lined its walls 
were filled with fine volumes de lux, and I ob- 
served that they were mostly French literature. 
The walls were of rich brown brocade velvet, 
against which a few fine etchings hung. Rich 
rugs covered the floor. The drawing room 
walls were of soft green brocade satin. Placed 
in beautiful cabinets there were heirlooms of ex- 
quisite laces, fans and odd jewelry which had 
been worn in Spain many years ago by the 
ladies of his family. The cover of Maltese lace 
on the Steinway grand piano looked priceless to 
me. All the apartments on this floor were 
separated by French doors which could be 
folded back and the entire floor made into one 
grand apartment. Soft colored silks covered 
the French doors. 



BUENOS AIRES 61 

The dining room was equally handsome. It 
was a joy to dine from rare old Wedgewood 
china, and to eat with solid gold plate. There 
were several old Spanish dishes served which I 
was told had become almost obsolete ; only a few 
of the Argentine families retained them. A 
sweet was served which was delicious. Our host 
told us that it consisted of only milk and sugar, 
but that the secret was in the cooking which 
took hours and hours of stirring over a certain 
heat. We had our coffee and liquor in the 
coziest room. This little room was bright with 
sunlight; its walls were hung with rich Indian 
shawls and the chairs were covered with the skins 
of the native animal, the " vicuna," a very 
precious fur. 

When we had finished, Senor C. asked if we 
would care to " see his children." We had un- 
derstood that he was a bachelor and so were 
rather surprised. We were conducted to an en- 
closed court or garden on one side of which was 
a splendid large golden cage about thirty feet 
high in which were flying about the prettiest lit- 
tle birds with gorgeous plumage, singing all 
sorts of sweet songs ; marble statues and benches 
were grouped around a fountain surrounded 
with palms. It was ideal. 

Our host was a student and had traveled in 
every country in the world. He spoke English 
well, but would have preferred to converse in 
French. Being in deep mourning, he regretted 



m A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

that he could not invite us to the opera, to which 
he was devoted. 

We were now obliged to say adieu to our kind 
friend, Commander Y., as he took command of 
his ship the next day. We felt that we were 
much indebted to this good friend and genial 
gentleman for the many kind attentions he had 
shown us, strangers in his beautiful city. 

I returned to our hotel just in time to receive 
a call from two ladies, Mrs. James A. and her 
sister-in-law, Mrs. Willie A. The former was 
the leader of the English society in Buenos 
Aires. J. had an introduction to Mr. James 
A. from some friends in New York, and Mrs. A. 
came at once to pay me a visit. She was a re- 
markably beautiful lady, charmingly vivacious. 
She invited us for dinner the next evening at the 
" Lela," their home in Floris, which is situated 
in the extreme southern portion of the city. 

P. and his friend Doctor B. came for tea. 
The latter gentleman we found delightful. He 
owned a box in the Colon Opera House and 
kindly offered us the use of it while in B. A. 

September V7th: Buenos Aires. 

Carlos S-P came for us and took us in his 
car to his home to meet his mother and sister, 
whom we found most charming. Conversation 
was rather difficult as we spoke no Spanish and 
they spoke no English, but they received us with 



BUENOS AIRES 63 

such genuine hospitality that we quite enjoyed 
everything. We had our tea after the true Ar- 
gentine custom, all being seated at a large table 
in the dining room. I thought it delightful, but 
Carlos, who had been living so recently in Paris 
and Boston, did not approve of the old-fash- 
ioned way and seemed quite upset about it. We 
were especially attracted to Angelica, the sister, 
she being quite the prettiest Argentine lady we 
had seen. 

We found when we returned to the hotel that 
we had just time to dress for Mrs. A's dinner. 
Promptly at 7 :30 her car was announced. We 
found the footman waiting to tuck us in, as the 
evening was rather chilly and the ride a long 
one, forty minutes being required to make the 
journey from the " Plaza Hotel " to the " Lela," 
their home in Floris. It was a splendid old 
English house, built of gray stone and overrun 
with ivy. The beautiful quinta (or garden) 
was enclosed with a tall iron fence. It was too 
dark to see very much of the grounds. 

On descending to the drawing room we found 
a company of about twenty ladies and gentle- 
men discussing the races which they had at- 
tended at Hurlingham that afternoon. Our 
host was a Scotchman, and was as genial and 
hospitable as our hostess was beautiful and 
charming. We were presented to several Eng- 
lish people of title. Lady Susan T. was one of 



64 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

the guests, and was quite the ideal English lady. 
The large round table was perfect in every ap- 
pointment. Mrs. A. informed me afterwards 
that she brought all her servants from Lon- 
don, as it was difficult to manage a large place 
in B. A. unless one did bring them over. 

The dinner was very gay. I sat at the right 
of our host, and on my left was seated a major 
in the English army, just from India. He was 
exactly as I had always pictured an English 
army officer to be. 

J. was the lion of the evening, as every one 
wanted to know something about oil and gas. 
Little Mrs. Willie A. remarked that she also 
" knew something good in oil." 

" Tell us," we all exclaimed. 

" Sardines," tartly responded she, — very 
cleverly. 

After dinner we gathered about an open wood 
fire which was fascinating. The wood they 
burned was called " quebrache." It made a 
beautiful fire, somewhat like our hickory or sil- 
ver birch. There was a brass fender which 
stood around this fire, on the top of which was 
an upholstered seat. It was the first one of this 
sort I had ever seen and I thought it was a 
splendid idea. 

The costumes of the ladies were beautiful. 
Mrs. A. wore an exquisite French gown of lace. 
English women always look adorable in dinner 



BUENOS AIRES 65 

gowns. I thought Lady Susan's jewels were 
unusually handsome. 

Every one we met was nice to us. It was 
a pleasure, indeed, to think that so many thou- 
sands of miles from home we had found such 
kind friends. We enjoyed the drive home 
through the quiet streets, which were wonder- 
fully well lighted. Our host and hostess, know- 
ing we were unaccustomed to their city and 
streets, had thoughtfully brought and returned 
us in one of their own cars. 

September 18th: Buenos Aires. 

As it was Sunday, we slept very late. In the 
afternoon we secured a car, and taking P. with 
us, made a tour of the city and parks. We ob- 
served many small parks, or " plazas " as they 
were called, where usually a fine monument had 
been erected in the center, a fountain and beau- 
tiful flowers, and in some a band stand. The 
newer streets were quite wide and lined with fine 
trees whose tops were bobbed as they are in 
Paris. It is said that the city of B. A. employs 
a landscape artist to whom they pay $40,000 
gold per year just to arrange these boulevards 
and plazas. 

Palermo Park was beautiful, the Corso very 
gay indeed. As we slowly rode up and down 
several times, I thought I had never seen so 
many beautiful hats. The Argentine ladies 



66 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

wore them with so much grace. It was the year 
that ostrich plumes were so fashionable and, 
judging by the number I saw worn that day, 
they were very popular. The gentlemen I also 
admired very much. They usually wore Eng- 
lish morning coats, light spats and silk hats, 
and I might also add that I had seldom seen so 
many good looking gentlemen in so short a 
space of time. 

We saw a great number of public conveyances 
almost identically the same. There were, I 
was told, in Buenos Aires over five thousand of 
these carriages. They looked like our " Vic- 
toria," only the drivers did not sit quite so 
high as they do in those of ours in the United 
States. Sometimes the drivers of these horses 
were very cruel. The streets being paved with 
asphalt, they often became smooth as glass from 
the heavy traffic. I saw horses who had slipped 
and fallen, and the drivers beat them until I 
was perfectly frantic to help the poor beasts 
get up. Such an occurrence invariably at- 
tracted a crowd of curious people, who stood 
watching the poor beast's struggles, but who 
made no effort to assist him to rise. Horses of 
this type being very cheap in Argentine, one 
more or less does not matter. 

On returning we all had tea with Doctor B. 
He presented J. and P. each with a splendid 
carabine (or revolver) to take with them when 



BUENOS AIRES 67 

they started the next day for their long journey 
into the jungles of northern Argentine. They 
were to travel by railroad north to the end of 
the government road, then go by mule-back over 
a hundred miles through the wildest part of the 
country. I should have liked to have gone 
along, but it was quite impossible for a woman 
to make the journey. 

September 19th: Buenos Aires. 

I felt very sad when J. and P. left but I 
knew that it would be a very interesting trip for 
them. They had a splendid camping outfit, and 
I had learned by experience to know how to 
amuse myself and was seldom lonely. 

After I saw them off, as it was a very lovely 
day I called a carriage and thought I would 
drive ; but I had not gone far when I discovered 
that I had made a mistake, for as I did not speak 
Spanish I could not tell the driver where I 
wished to go, or when I wished to turn. Fortu- 
nately, I could tell him in Spanish to return to 
the hotel, and I vowed then never to start any- 
where alone in a carriage while in B. A. I was 
told afterwards that it was not the custom for 
ladies to drive by themselves ; that they should 
always be accompanied by a maid or companion. 
I seldom saw ladies walking on the streets of B. 
A., or, in fact, many of the Argentine gentle- 
men. Every one rode excepting the lower 



68 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

classes or the foreigners. However, I walked 
many miles each day and met with nothing but 
courtesy during the ten weeks I lived in B. A., 
and I never saw a drunken man on the streets. 

In this hotel there was a very attractive mez- 
zanine floor overlooking the office, where all who 
cared to could enjoy their coffee after dinner 
and listen to the music of the orchestra. This 
evening, while listening to the music and looking 
at the different people grouped about from al- 
most every country of the world, my attention 
was attracted by a very beautiful looking Eng- 
lish lady and her husband who sat on the oppo- 
site side of the balcony. I was agreeably sur- 
prised when a little later this lady joined me 
and introduced herself as Mrs. R. of London, a 
friend of Mrs. James A. She was indeed de- 
lightful, and the evening passed pleasantly. 
She invited me to go with her to the Argentine 
Country Club the following afternoon. 

September %0th: Buenos Aires. 

The air today was very bracing and the sun- 
shine positively alluring. I couldn't endure to 
remain indoors a moment. I took a long walk 
and discovered a fine public market. I thought 
it would be interesting to see how it compared 
with those of my own city. It was a large one 
story building, very well arranged. The meat, 
however, did not look inviting. Owing to the 



BUENOS AIRES 69 

climate, it must be consumed the same day that 
it is killed. The potatoes were really funny, 
only about as large as a hickory nut. I was 
told that they never grow any larger in this 
country. The asparagus was much the finest 
I had ever eaten. The vegetables were not 
washed and were not so invitingly displayed as 
they are in our markets. The strawberries 
and cherries were sold by the pound and lay in 
great heaps. There were bright flowers every- 
where. Eggs were 5^ each. I bought some 
fine oranges from an old Spanish woman. She 
was like an artist's model ; she was so old, so 
bent and wrinkly, and had such a sad face, but 
her eyes were very bright. She and I became 
good friends before I left B. A. I also bought 
some sweet scented violets. I saw a very pe- 
culiar looking fruit. It looked like a pear, but 
the skin had little hard lumps all over it. I 
found the price very high, two pesos each, but 
never having seen anything like it before, I pur- 
chased one and carried it home and I found that 
it was filled with a soft, milky substance, sweet 
and delicately flavored, — the most delicious 
fruit I had ever tasted. It was grown in north- 
ern Argentine and was very difficult to cultivate. 
Owing to its delicate substance, it cannot be 
shipped any distance or stored. I was told 
that it was a product peculiar to the Argentine 
and was known as the " fruit of the Gods." 



70 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

After lunch Mrs. R. called for me to go to 
the Country Club. We drove to the Central 
Argentine Railroad Station, and from there 
took a steam car a short distance out of the 
city. The club house was of English archi- 
tecture. There were some splendid trees near 
the building, which stood on a terrace. The 
links looked very good, and a great number of 
people were playing. We walked over the 
course and enjoyed the wild flowers and the 
pretty colored songbirds. Some friends of 
Mrs. R. joined us for tea, among them the Eng- 
lish major whom I met at Mrs. A.'s dinner. 
Although this was essentially an English club, 
there were many prominent Argentines among 
its members. 

On my return this afternoon my room looked 
like fairyland. Miss G. of Martenez (a suburb 
of B. A.), to whom I had a letter of introduc- 
tion, had sent me dozens of the most wonderful 
iris I had ever seen. I had not dreamt that 
there were so many varieties. The fragrance 
was intoxicating. The housekeeper had ar- 
ranged them about the room in tall vases, and 
they were so beautiful I had my dinner served 
in my rooms. There were some exquisite yel- 
low ones. It was such a friendly welcome to a 
stranger in a strange land. I hoped that she 
knew I loved every flower. 



BUENOS AIRES 71 

September %lst: Buenos Aires. 

The morning was not pleasant ; it rained ; but 
after writing a few letters I donned a raincoat 
and started out for a new adventure. On the 
Florida I had seen one day an English book 
shop. I went in today and found a book ex- 
change. I bought a book. After reading it, 
it could be exchanged for another by paying a 
fee of ten cents, and the original book was mine 
to take away if I wished. 

After lunch I visited the Art Gallery, which 
was a part of the Centennial Exposition. The 
buildings were very handsome and were situated 
on the San Martin Plaza, very near the hotel. 
The entrance fee was two pesos, or about one 
dollar of our money. I thought I had never 
seen a more pleasant arrangement for an art 
gallery. Each country had its own apartment. 
The walls, the soft velvet rugs, and the com- 
fortable upholstered divans in the center of the 
rooms were of the same color, — light gray, 
blue, brown or crimson. In one large gallery 
near the center of the building was a splendid 
orchestra discoursing good music. 

I did not think the English, French or Ger- 
man displays so good as they should have been. 
The Italian things were most interesting. 

The art of Chile was a revelation; not only 
was the painting clever, but there were pleas- 
ing subjects which I found most interesting. 



72 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

The Spanish exhibit was, to my mind, the very 
best. The " Zorelles " collection occupied sev- 
eral rooms and the paintings fascinated me 
strangely. I returned many times to study 
and enjoy them. There was such dash, so 
much life and action in them. His men and 
women seemed alive, his beggars grewsome. 
One of them, the dwarf, was positively un- 
canny ; his little, wicked eyes seemed to follow 
me even into the next room, where I found this 
same model in another picture. These paint- 
ings reminded me of the old Spanish masters. 
There were many other Spanish pictures which 
I admired. 

Soon after my return from the gallery I re- 
ceived a visit from Miss G., who had sent me the 
iris. She proved a most attractive young lady, 
and we passed a pleasant hour over our tea. 
She invited me to come to her home Sunday 
afternoon, it being their custom to receive vis- 
itors from the U. S. A. on each Sunday. After 
she had gone I spent an hour resting and enjoy- 
ing one of the gorgeous sunsets which were so 
beautiful from my window. The atmosphere 
was so clear that the color effect was wonder- 
ful. 

After dinner, the R.'s, my English friends, 
joined me in the balcony for coffee. Mrs. R., 
like most English ladies, enjoyed a cigarette 
with it. She offered me one of her favorite pri- 



BUENOS AIRES 73 

vate brand, which I was obliged to decline. I 
told her I was very sorry, but they did not 
agree with me, which made her smile. 

The evening passed very pleasantly. They 
had lived in many interesting places. Mrs. 
R.'s father had been at one time a governor in 
India. She related some interesting incidents 
of her life in that country. Mr. R. had built 
railroads in China. He said the most difficult 
thing to obtain was the right-of-way for the 
railroad in China, because of the number of an- 
cestors who had been buried and whose graves 
must always be kept sacred. Life in Africa 
had been full of adventure, and Peru they con- 
sidered the most picturesque of all South Amer- 
ica. 

J. had been gone three days now, but I found 
time flew ; everyone I met was so kind and every- 
thing I saw was so full of interest. 

September %%nd: Buenos Aires. 

I went for a walk over many new streets to- 
day. Those of the older portion of the city 
were very narrow ; there were hundreds of small 
shops on either side, — lace shops, shops where 
one could have bought beautiful aigrettes for 
almost a song, pawn shops which I was dying 
to enter and nose around among the old-fash- 
ioned jewelry and other curios. 

I went to the market again. My nice, old, 



74 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

wrinkly woman was there; she kissed my hand. 
I knew she robbed me of my pesos and smiled 
as she returned me a few coppers in change for 
an orange, but I was glad she did, because she 
looked so miserable and besides, her oranges 
were good. 

I received a call from Dr. L., the Harvard 
student. He had tea with me. I invited him 
for luncheon Sunday, and planned to take him 
with me to Martenez, because, never having 
been there and not knowing how to speak any 
Spanish, I thought I might not find the way. 

September %3rd: Buenos Aires. 

I felt fine and the air was so exhilarating I 
could walk great distances without feeling fa- 
tigued. I explored the streets east of the 
Florida. The day before I had walked on the 
west side. I saw many of the large banking 
houses, — German, English, French and Italian, 
but not one of the United States. The Bolsa, 
or Stock Exchange, was a fine building, and I 
found many of the steamship offices in that 
neighborhood. I tried to enter the cathedral, 
but was unable to discover an entrance which 
was open. The building was rather modern 
looking and I did not like its appearance from 
the outside as well as I liked those of the very 
old, Spanish-looking ones. The building of the 
La Prensa, the largest daily newspaper in 



BUENOS AIRES 75 

B. A., was most pretentious. J. and I after- 
wards visited this building; it was quite inter- 
esting. There was a gorgeously furnished suite 
of apartments which was always at the disposal 
of any great celebrity who visited B. A. I un- 
derstood, however, that only two Yankees had 
used them, a well-known politician, and Cap- 
tain Cook when they visited this country a short 
time ago. 

Tea at the Plaza Hotel was always entertain- 
ing. One saw, almost any afternoon, scores of 
fashionably attired men and women. The 
women of B. A. had exquisite taste ; their gowns 
were mostly rich black or dark blue colors and 
the hats were marvelous. Paris sends her lat- 
est and best models here, at least six months 
ahead of New York. The men who came here 
for tea were the wealthy young Argentines who 
spend most of the year abroad. 

Dinner at the Plaza was also a very pleasant 
occasion. One dined usually at eight and the 
ladies wore attractive dinner gowns. Some of 
the ladies were beautiful and there were usually 
many distinguished foreigners. I had a very 
desirable little table beside a latticed window, 
which I found very enjoyable to have opened 
in summer. The service was good and the food 
delicious. Seated at a table near was a noted 
English author and a much bronzed explorer of 
no mean reputation. Their conversation was 



76 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

often brilliant. A celebrated artist of London 
and his wife were also living at this hotel. 
There was one German baroness who was really 
the first smartly gowned German woman I had 
ever seen; but the very best looking lady, by 
all odds, was my friend, Mrs. R. She was tall, 
blond, with blue eyes and a splendid complex- 
ion, and she carried herself like a queen. 

September 24<th: Buenos Aires. 

I was sorry that I overslept this a. m. My 
bump of curiosity was so large I couldn't en- 
dure to miss a moment that could be enjoyed 
about this alluring city, breathing this won- 
derful sea air and sunshine. 

I opened the windows and stood looking from 
the balcony onto the San Martin Plaza. It 
seemed alive with activity ; every tree and shrub 
was just bursting into lovely soft green foliage. 
The birds were busy as beavers building nests 
and courting their mates. This plaza is one of 
the largest in B. A. Around it stand, on every 
side, the handsomest homes of the wealthy Ar- 
gentines. The magnificent new Palace of the 
owner of La Prensa is erected on the southern 
side. It is the largest private residence in 
B. A., built of beautiful, soft gray sandstone 
and marble and of an unusual style of archi- 
tecture. On the west side the Jockey Club ex- 
pects to erect a new club house which will cost 



BUENOS AIRES 77 

millions. Many of the embassies are situated 
on the southern side. There is a magnificent 
monument in the center erected to the memory 
of General San Martin, and a beautiful foun- 
tain on either side of it. I never tired of this 
view from my room. 

September Q^th: Buenos Aires. 

After luncheon I took a tram car in front of 
the hotel which took me within a square of Pa- 
lermo Park. The car service in B. A. I found 
very good indeed. I had a little card with a 
list of the cars, which were numbered in large 
figures, and not speaking Spanish, I had only 
to consult my card, and select the number oppo- 
site the desired destination. One of the regula- 
tions, which was strictly adhered to, was that 
the car must furnish a seat to each passenger 
except five persons who were allowed to stand 
on the rear platform. 

It was a wonderful spring day and the flow- 
ers and birds were everywhere. The Corso 
looked quite deserted except for a few ladies 
who had left their automobiles or carriages and 
were sauntering slowly up and down in the 
bright sunshine. I had an opportunity to ob- 
serve the beautiful palms which line this Corso ; 
they were fine, but did not compare with those 
seen in Rio de Janeiro. Many children were 
playing on the grass beside a lovely lake. Some 



78 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

were feeding the swans. Infants, carried by 
their French nurses, were beautifully dressed; 
their long coats of real lace were exquisite. 
They all looked so chubby, healthy and happy. 

I wandered about, admiring everything, — 
the splendid monuments, the great variety of 
trees. One of them amused me very much, it 
was so curious. It was called the " Drunkard's 
Tree." Why? I did not discover. It started 
all right, but soon after it left the ground it 
separated in a half dozen or more perfectly 
formed trunks, which again were united at the 
height of ten or twelve feet, where they looked 
as if they were tied together with a rope ; then 
after a short distance they branched into a per- 
fectly sober looking tree. 

I walked back to the hotel and all along the 
way there were handsome homes. I under- 
stood a large prize was offered by the city for 
the best style of architecture. Many of these 
homes contained enclosed gardens which I 
longed to see; I was sure they were beautiful. 
On my way home I passed Recoletta Park. 
Here again I saw numbers of beautiful children 
and their French maids. The " Palace de 
Glace " was in this park. Ice skating was 
very popular that year in B. A. I returned to 
the hotel very tired, but very much pleased with 
this beautiful city. 

Carlos S-P and his sister came for tea. We 



BUENOS AIRES 79 

listened to the music and they pointed out 
many of the fashionable society people who 
were there that afternoon. Angelica looked 
lovely ; she wore an exquisite gown, and her hat 
was a dream. The young student who had 
shipped before the mast coming down on the 
Vasari called later, and I invited him to dine 
with me next Tuesday. 

September Q5t7i: Buenos Aires. 

Oh, how homesick I felt that morning ! How 
I wished to be in good old Pennsylvania! I 
wanted to see all my loved ones ; I wanted to see 
the hills, and the vivid colors of autumn. I 
wondered what J. was doing. Was he ill? 
Had the wild animals devoured him? I felt so 
forlorn I thought perhaps church would be a 
good place for me. I was directed to an Epis- 
copal church, but I could not find it and re- 
turned to a small church I had seen near by. 
It was a Methodist Episcopal church. I had 
not been in one for years. This one reminded 
me of those I attended when a child. Everyone 
joined in the singing, and there was a good, 
plain gospel sermon, with an occasional amen. 
I returned much improved in spirits. 

The day was delightful. Dr. D., the Har- 
vard student, came for luncheon, and I was 
very thankful that I had invited him to go with 
me to tea at the G.'s in Martenez. I never 



80 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

should have been able to find my way, or to de- 
mand the right ticket for myself. We took a 
train at & :30 from the station of the Argentine 
Central Railroad, which follows the River Plate 
west. The water was yellow and not very at- 
tractive looking, but on the other side of the 
track there were many fine country places with 
beautiful quintas and splendid orchards of 
peach trees in blossom. 

It was only a half hour's ride to Martenez. 
Mr. G., our host, met us at the station. His 
greeting was very cordial, as was that of his 
beautiful and charming wife. It did my home- 
sick soul good to meet some real Yankees. 
There were several other guests from the 
United States. The G.'s had lived in B. A. 
twenty-five years ; they came from Boston. 
Mr. G. was a wool merchant. There was one 
son who was in Harvard at that time; Ellen, 
who had graduated from Bryn Mawr College 
the year previous ; and a very charming young 
girl of fourteen. The house was quite an an- 
cient one ; the ceilings were at least fifteen or 
twenty feet in height. All the windows on the 
first floor had heavy iron bars, and in a large 
hall which ran the length of the house was an 
old water well. These old Argentine country 
places were generally built in this manner, as I 
observed many others like it. The rooms were* 
most attractively furnished, containing many 



BUENOS AIRES 81 

works of art, a splendid library, and many cu- 
rios collected from all parts of South America. 
Every one went for a walk in the quinta or gar- 
den. It was so beautiful, — very large and well 
arranged. The iris, the lilacs, the peonies, 
lilies-of-the-valley and orange blossoms were su- 
perb. There were many cherry trees in blos- 
som, which looked like heaps of snow. (We ate 
ripe cherries from these trees before sailing 
from B. A., the last of November.) It was im- 
possible to fully appreciate it all in so short a 
time. 

The tea was served Argentine fashion ; we all 
sat down at a large table, laden with delicious 
muffins, tea and cakes. Every one was so 
agreeable, and all seemed so pleased with young 
Dr. D., my Argentine friend. A very good 
story was told during tea. The G.'s have a sum- 
mer place on the sea side of Uruguay. Last 
summer, during the Revolution, every avail- 
able horse was seized by the army. The chil- 
dren of the G.'s heard that the army was on the 
way to take their favorite riding horse, so they 
covered him with the United States flag, thus 
protecting him. Mrs. G. gave me a beautiful 
bouquet of flowers when I left, and told me I 
must always feel I had a home in Argentine 
while they lived there. I enjoyed the after- 
noon very much. I was glad to rest and have 
my dinner alone in my apartment. 



82 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

September %6th: Buenos Aires. 

The morning was wet. It was rather nice to 
have the morning to mend my clothes and think 
about my family. Usually I was so busy sight 
seeing I did not find time for anything else. 
About noon it seemed to clear, and I wandered 
out for a little walk. Each time I went fur- 
ther from the hotel than the time before. I 
was always finding such queer shops and funny 
little narrow streets ; sometimes I was almost 
lost, but the Florida was always to be found by 
walking east or west, and after that I was soon 
at my hotel. 

About two o'clock Carlos S-P and his sister 
came to take me to the Exposition. We visited 
the Agricultural Hall. The exhibits of fruits 
and grains were fine. The woods of northern 
Argentine were interesting. Some specimens 
were as hard as marble and so beautifully 
marked and colored. 

The domestic animals I liked very much. 
There were some splendid sheep and hogs ; the 
chickens and ducks were very fine, and there 
were some ostriches. There was a large os- 
trich farm not far from B. A. which was very 
interesting to visit. People often rode on their 
backs ; it was a droll sight. The cattle were 
the finest specimens I had ever seen. I was in- 
formed that the most fabulous prices were paid 



BUENOS AIRES 83 

abroad for the best breeds, which were brought 
to B. A. 

Some friends of the S. P.'s went with us, and 
we had tea at the " French Cafe " in Palermo 
Park. After dinner the R.'s joined me and 
we spent a delightful evening. They told me 
they were in New York last year in July, and 
they considered it much warmer in U. S. A. than 
in Argentine in summer time. 

September 87 th: Buenos Aires. 

The day was perfectly lovely. I took a long 
walk in the a. m., and after lunch Carlos S. P. 
and I went to visit the Zoological Gardens. 
They were very extensive and well arranged. 
Running through the grounds was a miniature 
railroad, which was a great convenience as the 
distances seemed great. We found the lions 
and tigers dwelling in fine buildings of the real 
Indian style of architecture. The camels had 
real Egyptian looking houses. There were ele- 
phants, bears and seals, and other animals. 
The llamas from Peru were very interesting. 
Great boa constrictors were in glass houses. A 
very tall iron cage contained miniature moun- 
tains for the condor. They were much larger 
than our eagles and very strong; they could fly 
over the Andes Mountains, and had been seen 
to disappear into the clouds. 

The native Indian has a novel way of catch- 



84 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

ing the condors. He covers himself "with a 
sheep, or goat skin; then lies very quietly on 
the ground until a condor pounces upon him 
and clutching him in its strong talons, flies to- 
ward its nest. The Indian has a sharp knife in 
his hand with which he puts out the condor's 
eves, thus blinding the bird. This causes it to 
slowly descend to the earth, and after that it 
is easily captured. This was a tale, Carlos 
said, told him as a child. 

The things which amused me most were the 
penguins from Terra del Fuego. They made 
me smile every time I thought about them. 
They looked so like little soldiers, standing in 
straight rows, their wings held against their 
sides as if they were holding arms. They were 
covered with soft little feathers, for all the 
world like fur coats, and they looked so droll, 
as if they might be humans ; they fascinated me 
strangely. I returned several times just to 
watch them, for I felt sure they would suddenly 
speak, they looked so wise. 

Returning with Carlos S. P., we had tea with 
his sister, Angelica. We found her sitting by 
a casement window, the sunlight shining 
through the half-opened shutter ; she was weav- 
ing tapestry on an old-fashioned loom. She 
looked like some beautiful picture. After tea 
we had some music, Carlos and she playing on 
two old guitars, — instruments which their 



BUENOS AIRES 85 

great grandmothers had used. The guitars 
were very odd looking indeed, but their tones 
were exquisite. Carlos and his sister sang 
some very old Spanish songs which were quite 
unusual. I played the accompaniments for 
some French songs, and Carlos showed us some 
of his paintings. I was delighted, for they 
showed great originality and much talent. He 
had also just finished translating the " Rubai- 
yat " into Spanish. 

That evening Mr. B., the Yale man, dined 
with me. He seemed to enjoy the contrast be- 
tween a Ritz-Carleton Hotel and the fore-castle 
of the Vasari. He was a nice young chap, and 
will have had a wonderful experience when he 
finishes this voyage. He said he was much im- 
proved in health and was enjoying his experi- 
ence as a common sailor. 

September %6th: Buenos Aires. 

It blew a perfect gale. After lunch I went 
with some friends to visit the Dartsefia Norte. 
These friends were returning to Italy by the 
large and splendid Italian boat Varmalde. It 
sails for Genoa from B. A., making the voyage 
in seventeen days. The furnishings were su- 
perb. There were private sun parlors con- 
nected with the cabins de lux. The dining 
salon was quite gorgeous, it being arranged for 
a banquet that evening which " Seiior Maca- 



86 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

roni," the wireless inventor, was giving for his 
friends in B. A. He had come over on this 
ship, and I understood would return on her in 
a few days. I did not think it nearly so de- 
sirable as the Vasari, which was built for the 
tropics and had cotton hangings and hard wood 
floors, and wide, roomy open decks. As we re- 
turned, I could not resist taking my friends 
aboard the Vasari, just to show them a per- 
fectly proper South Atlantic steam ship. They 
were obliged to confess that my judgment was 
correct. 

Mrs. R. and I dined together that evening, 
Mr. R. also having gone on quite a journey. 

I was very happy that day. We received 
our first mail from U. S. A., and it was wonder- 
ful to read the letters from our loved ones, even 
if they were a month old. 

September %8th: Buenos Aires. 

In the morning I spent hours trying to learn 
some Spanish phrases. I wanted to go to Mar- 
tenez and I was obliged to ask for la billete en 
Espaflol. 

It was beautiful that afternoon in the coun- 
try. Mrs. G. and I walked through several 
peach orchards which looked like pictures of 
Japan in the cherry blossom time. She told 
me the earth was so rich that one had only to 
scratch it a little and scatter some seed, and it 



BUENOS AIRES 87 

would blossom. The roses would soon be at 
their best. 

September %9th: Buenos Aires. 

I was being cheated out of our wonderful 
autumn, — the season I adored in our country. 
I wanted so much to see those glorious colored 
leaves which cover our beautiful Pennsylvania 
mountains. This country was very flat and I 
had not yet seen any forests. I invited both 
of the Mrs. A.'s and Mrs. R. for lunch today. 
The head waiter, who was English, arranged a 
good menu. After luncheon we had a game of 
bridge and I told their fortunes, which quite 
pleased them. All the people I had ever known 
liked to have their palms read, and I was said 
to have a talent for that art. 

Mr. and Mrs. R. and myself were invited to 
a large dinner party at the A.'s the following 
evening. The S-P's called for me, and we took 
a walk on the Florida and had our tea at an 
English tea place on that street. There we 
saw many English people. Every person took 
tea here, men drinking it instead of the cock- 
tails and highballs which many people of the 
United States drink. 

October 1st: Buenos Aires. 

Spring in all its beauty was here. The cli- 
mate was so exhilarating. The flowers and 



88 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

blossoms were splendid. I went to the market 
in the morning, and found my nice, old, wrinkly 
orange woman. She looked so pleased to see 
me; she kissed my hand. 

I met a Mrs. C. of Louisville, Ky. She had 
been in B. A. with her husband for several 
months. She asked me if I had seen the Recol- 
etta Cemetery, and as I had not even heard 
of it before, she offered to take me that after- 
noon. It was just a pleasant walk from our 
hotel, through a beautiful residential portion 
of the city. I had often seen this park, but I 
had not seen the cemetery, which was inclosed 
with a very tall plaster wall covered with ivy. 
A small, Spanish type of church stood near 
the entrance. One entered the large gate and 
found oneself in a miniature city. It was laid 
out in streets, which were paved in mosaics. 

The mausoleums were erected of marble and 
exquisite granite of different sizes and designs. 
The glass doors permitted one to observe the 
interior, minutely. The casket stood upon a 
marble bench ; near it was a handsomely carved 
arm chair ; fine portraits hung on the wall ; and 
often there were beautiful flowers in golden 
vases and rich rugs on the floor. We saw some 
of the friends of the deceased sitting or kneel- 
ing beside the caskets. At the door there were 
receptacles for the cards of those who pay a 
visit to the dead. 



BUENOS AIRES 89 

There was a vault underneath this where 
other caskets could repose. Sometimes beau- 
tiful marble statues stood at the entrances to 
these mausoleums. I really thought I had never 
seen anything which interested me more. Of 
course only the very wealthiest Argentines were 
buried there. 

One morning I saw a funeral cortege. The 
" carro funebre " (hearse) was drawn by four 
coal black horses, with white reins, and huge 
black plumes on their heads. The " carro " 
seemed to swing between the wheels. As each 
person left his carriage and entered the chapel 
he dropped his visiting card into a receptacle 
placed at the door for that purpose. Argen- 
tina people observe mourning very closely ; even 
the smallest child of the family is usually 
dressed in black. 

We spent much time in this curious ceme- 
tery. From there we took a coach and drove 
on the Corso, returning for tea at the English 
tea house on the Florida, and arrived at our 
hotel about 6 p. m. I had only time to rest 
a few moments and dress for the dinner at Mrs. 
A's. Her car came for the R's and myself. 
There was that night a large and gay dinner 
party. Every one I met was charming. After 
dinner a little farce was given by several of the 
guests ; it was clever and very amusing. I 
told every one's fortune. I enjoyed talking 



90 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

with the English ma j or, — one was sure to meet 
him at the " Lela." There were two young 
English boys just back from school in England. 
Their description of Eton and tales of life in 
an English school interested me, as my sons 
were just out of college and I was very keen 
on anything concerning young men of that age. 

October 2nd: Buenos Aires. 

I went to the G's for tea. I now could quite 
easily ask in Spanish for a ticket to Martenez. 
The quinta was perfect; the roses were beau- 
tiful. They grew here in the greatest pro- 
fusion ; the " Marechal Niel " grew to a great 
height, the vines being often as thick as one's 
wrist ; the stems and thorns were dark red and 
glossy, and the perfume delicious. But the 
roses I liked best were of a large white variety. 
Some were four inches across ; the petals were 
like white velvet, not very double; the large 
stamens and pistils were rich yellow ; and they 
had such a delicate perfume. I had never seen 
roses anywhere else so beautiful as those were. 
There were many other varieties of beautiful 
flowers growing here which I had never before 
seen. 

October 3rd: Buenos Aires. 

Mrs. G., the lady from Kentucky, was to 
return by the Vasari. We went together to 



BUENOS AIRES 91 

look at her cabin. She liked the boat im- 
mensely. We had our tea with the captain. 
I invited him to luncheon Wednesday. 

Although I had read of the locust plague en- 
countered in this country, I was not prepared 
to witness the extraordinary sight that I ex- 
perienced that day. I was reading by an open 
window when I heard a noise which at first 
sounded like the roar of the surf at the sea 
shore; the sound became more distinct and 
much stronger, and in alarm I looked up and 
saw a dark cloud coming from the northwest. 
I hastened to close my windows and doors and 
was not a moment too soon, for in an instant 
the locusts struck the glass like hail, — millions, 
of them. I could not see the plaza or the near- 
est building. This continued for some time, 
and when it ceased I saw that the ground was 
covered inches deep, and the opposite walls 
were as if stuccoed with locusts. 

I understood that these insects do not de- 
stroy the foliage; it is the young which are 
hatched from the eggs that are laid by the 
female locusts. As soon as they can crawl 
they strip every blade of grass, and the trees 
and shrubs of their foliage. 

The ladies were dreadfully afraid of them. 
They were very persistent and crawled under 
the windows and doors ; if they got on one's 
clothing or near enough to eject a nasty, dark 



92 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

fluid, it stained one's garments ; and if it 
touched one's flesh, it stung like the bite of 
an insect. One lady told me that the eggs 
would not be fit to use for several weeks, as the 
chickens ate the dead locusts and this gave the 
eggs a dreadful color and taste. The chickens 
also tasted badly if used now. Sometimes the 
locusts covered the tracks of the railroads and 
when crushed created a sticky, greasy sub- 
stance, making progress impossible until they 
were cleared away. 

The Government of Argentina has been ap- 
propriating large sums of money for the ex- 
termination of these pests, and the experts are 
meeting with some success. 

October 4<th: Buenos Aires. 

Mrs. Willie A. and her small son, Kenneth, 
came for tea with me. K. was a darling; he 
liked the music. I took him to my rooms to 
see the pigeons. There were many beautiful 
ones, which came every day to the balcony and 
some were so tame that they would eat from 
my hand and perch on my shoulder and head. 
I never should have thought I would make a 
pet of a pigeon, but I really found them great 
company. Kenneth was so pleased when they 
ate from his hand. 

I received a telegram from J. He was to 
arrive on the morrow at 8 p. m. 




NATIVE INDIAN WOMEN 
NORTHERN ARGENTINE 



BUENOS AIRES 93 

October 5th: Buenos Aires. 

I could scarcely put in the day, I was so ex- 
cited because J. would be back in a few hours. 
I went with Carlos and Angelica to the " Palace 
de Glace " to watch the skating. It was a 
splendid building, and presented a very ani- 
mated sight. There were many beautiful 
ladies skating and many pretty children. 
Some of the costumes were extremely smart. 
There was some fancy skating. We had tea 
while there, and I was introduced to many de- 
lightful friends of the S-P's. 

J. arrived, but I scarcely recognized him. 
He had been bitten by insects until his face 
was horribly swollen, and his beard of two 
weeks' growth made him a sight. He had some 
difficulty in making the manager of the hotel 
understand who he really was. Their trip had 
been interesting but most uncomfortable. 
They had been obliged to cut their way many 
times through jungles which looked impassable, 
and had seen many mountain lions and venom- 
ous snakes, Indians, etc. The scenery at 
times was beautiful. The climate was very 
tropical, and the native Indians interesting. 
J. tried to get a snap shot of a baby, naked, 
but its mother insisted on dressing it in its 
best Sunday clothes. The accommodations 
were sometimes dreadful ; the hotels certainly 



94 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

did not bear a Ritz-Carleton reputation for 
comfort. 

But now that he had returned safely, nothing 
much mattered. I enjoyed hearing the tales 
of his unusual experiences; they were fasci- 
nating. 

We were invited to a fancy dress ball at Mrs. 
A's. 

October 6th: Buenos Aires. 

It was delightful to be with J. once more. 
I was anxious to show him all the interesting 
places I had seen while he had been away. We 
visited the Art Gallery this afternoon, P. going 
with us, and there we met Carlos S. P. They 
enjoyed the pictures and agreed with me that 
the Zorelles collection was the most interesting. 

P. gave a very smart dinner party tonight. 
There were six of us, — the military attache of 
our legation and his wife, a charming couple, 
and Mr. L. of Virginia, an attache of the lega- 
tion at Rio de Janeiro, who was on a visit to 
B. A. The dinner was given at the French 
Cafe on the Florida and was a great success. 

Then we had the pleasure of attending the 
opera given in the Colon Opera House. Dr. 
B. had given P. the use of his box for the eve- 
ning. The opera, " Ai'da," was well rendered by 
a Spanish opera company of Madrid, Spain. 



BUENOS AIRES 95 

The prima donna had a beautiful voice, but she 
was a poor actress. The tenor was really 
splendid; he was fine looking, a good actor and 
a great favorite in B. A., being much feted in 
Argentine society. 

This magnificent opera house was the pride 
of the Argentine people. I was not surprised, 
because nothing could be finer. It cost 35,- 
000,000 pesos ; it occupied an entire city block, 
and faced a fine plaza. The exterior was of 
handsome design and the foyer presented a 
brilliant sight, filled as it was with handsomely 
dressed men and women. The jewels worn by 
the ladies were the finest I had ever seen. The 
house was arranged in the usual horseshoe 
shape, and the woodwork was inlaid mahogany ; 
the hangings and color scheme were of that 
beautiful " Madame de Maintenon " rose. I 
observed that there was not a vacant seat. 
We considered ourselves most fortunate to be 
occupying so splendid a box, — the seventh on 
the right hand side of the first tier, with a fine 
view of the stage and audience, — as no seats 
could be purchased because they all were sub- 
scribed for at the beginning of the season. 
This splendid and fashionable audience seemed 
to be most appreciative. The people of Ar- 
gentina are noted for their love and support 
of things musical. 



96 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

October 7 th: Buenos Aires. 

J. and I were fortunate to have been invited 
to the fancy dress ball given by Mrs. James A. 
at her residence, the " Lela." She had very 
kindly told us to come without a fancy costume. 
As J. was away, I did not decide to go until 
his return. Lady Susan T. had also just re- 
turned from a camping expedition into the 
pampas, and she and her husband went without 
costume. 

As we approached the " Lela," we saw many 
curious persons standing outside the iron fence, 
admiring the brilliant scene within. The beau- 
tiful quinta was lighted with many Japanese 
lanterns ; large Japanese umbrellas were pro- 
tecting cozy seats, and the walks were covered 
with rich, red velvet carpet. A splendid 
orchestra played during the evening for those 
who rested or strolled about this enchanting 
garden. It was a gay pageant that passed, 
representing Turks, gondoliers, Spanish danc- 
ers, Pirouettes, pollywogs, Miss Polly Prim, 
Little Boy Blue, Chinamen, and court ladies 
and gentlemen. 

Our hostess wore an exquisite gown of the 
Louis Quinze period; the fabric was wonderful 
and it was most becoming. Our host wore the 
costume of a real Indian Rajah, which he had 
purchased in India the year previous, and had 
added all the jewels he owned or could borrow 



BUENOS AIRES 97 

from the family ; he looked regal. Mrs. D. of 
London wore a costume of Joan d'Arc which 
was most attractive, I thought. Mrs. Willie 
A. as Little Boy Blue had two patches on the 
seat of her trousers and was very amusing. 

The decorations in the house were beautiful. 
The walls of the hall were covered with purple 
wisteria, and those of the drawing rooms with 
American Beauty roses. During the evening 
a buffet luncheon was served in the Chinese 
room and at midnight a splendid supper. 
There were not over fifty guests, — mostly 
English. 

The next day the papers were full of glowing 
accounts of the ball, it having been one of the 
smartest functions of the season. 

October 9th: Buenos Aires. 

We had the pleasure of having Mr. A. join 
us in the grill room for breakfast at 1&. He 
informed us that they had danced at the ball 
until daylight, and that every one was quite 
tired out. We were glad of the opportunity 
of expressing our appreciation of the great 
pleasure it had given us to be there. 

P. dined with us that night; later Carlos 
S. P. paid us a visit. It was amusing to hear 
their opinions about matrimony; both are 
great admirers of North American women. 

There were two young boys staying in this 



98 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

hotel whom I liked very much. They had been 
in every country of South America with their 
father, one of the officials of " Grace and Com- 
pany " of New York. They found Peru the 
most interesting of all the countries they vis- 
ited. It certainly had been a wonderful edu- 
cation for them. Now they were very home- 
sick, not having seen their mother for three 
months. 

October 10th: Buenos Aires. 

The Vasari sailed for New York this morn- 
ing. J. and I found quite a gathering of our 
former fellow passengers there. We almost 
regretted that we, too, were not returning by 
her, as it would have enabled us to spend 
Thanksgiving at home. 

It was the first time we had seen Major C, 
the gentleman from Kentucky, since landing in 
B. A. He told us he had disposed of all his 
fine racing horses at a fancy price and was 
sailing for Europe that week. After waving 
a farewell to the captain and his passengers, 
we went as the guests of Major C. for luncheon 
at the Grand Hotel, which is situated on the 
Florida. It was one of the oldest and most 
popular of the hotels in B. A., — quite cele- 
brated for its cuisine. The food was really 
wonderful. Seated at a table next to us was 
a party consisting of several members of the 



BUENOS AIRES 99 

Cabinet of the newly elected President, one of 
whom I admired very much, — the Secretary of 
State; he was a diplomat of renown. After 
lunch we went to the Art Gallery and had tea 
while there, which was very good. 

October 11th: Buenos Aires. 

I enjoyed a long drive through an entirely 
new portion of this wonderful city while on my 
way to a luncheon party at the home of Mrs. 
Willie A. I found there several ladies whom 
I had already met and some others whom I 
found very agreeable. They were still dis- 
cussing the ball of Friday night. We used 
very useful, and to me unusual, silver tongs for 
the asparagus ; everyone remarked about them. 
Our hostess said she had bought them at Tif- 
fany's in New York. 

While strolling through the quinta, which 
was very beautiful, I remarked a tall pole 
which had at the top a wire cage with a padlock 
attached. It contained fresh meat. I was 
told that this was the proper way to keep it, 
as it must be consumed the same day that it 
was killed, and that it was never placed in an 
ice box. 

My hostess accompanied me home in her car 
and showed me many new and interesting 
streets and public buildings which I had not 
jet discovered. It was a beautiful day. I 



100 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

should have been quite happy if it had not been 
for the fact that J. left again the next noon. 
He was sailing for Commordora Rivadavia, in 
Patagonia, almost the extreme end of South 
America. This would probably detain us in 
this country for a month longer. The climate 
in Patagonia was said to be very uncomfortable 
and the accommodations poor, so I was to 
remain where I was until J. returned. P. was 
to go along. I knew I should miss them very 
much. And now we should be obliged to spend 
the holidays in Europe, — probably in France, 
— instead of in our home, as we had hoped to 
do. Everyone told us that they had had the 
same experience in this country; it was always 
" manana " (tomorrow). One never got away 
when one expected. On the other hand, the 
city was so delightfully interesting and our 
friends had been so kind and generous, we could 
not help being happy and contented. 

October 12th: Buenos Aires. 

At noon, J. and P. sailed for Patagonia on 
the S. S. President e Quint ana, and to be gone 
probably a month. I was forlorn and sad 
after seeing them off. 

I had read in the morning Journal (I could 
read a little Spanish now — enough for the 
general news of the day) that Senor Sanz Pena, 
the new president, was to be inaugurated that 



BUENOS AIRES 101 

afternoon. With some friends I went to the 
Capitol, where we saw him take the oath much 
as our presidents do in Washington. After 
taking the oath he was driven from the Capitol 
to the Pink Palace, — they are scarcely a mile 
apart. The Avenue de Mayo was flanked on 
either side by the mounted cavalry, which stood 
side by side the entire distance. The buildings 
along this fine avenue were handsomely decor- 
ated with flags and festooned with brightly 
colored buntings. 

The president and three other men were 
driven in a queer looking two-wheeled carriage, 
a sort of " Tillbury," the seat of which was 
wide enough for four persons to be seated side 
by side, and which was drawn by four black 
horses, hitched abreast. There was no proces- 
sion, and as soon as the president entered the 
Pink Palace which is the official residence (the 
private home of the president being located in 
another portion of the city), the cavalry 
formed two by two and rode away. There was 
no cheering or demonstration of any sort. It 
appeared most democratic and impressive. 
The new president, I was told, was a very able 
man and very popular with all classes in the 
Argentine. The few times I had seen him I 
had been impressed by the fine and determined 
character portrayed in his face. I was so de- 
lighted to have had this splendid opportunity 



102 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

of witnessing the inauguration. I had been 
present at the recent inaugural of our own 
President Taft and it was interesting to ob- 
serve the difference. 

October 14tth: Buenos Aires. 

Mrs. R. and I had luncheon at Mrs. P's, 
an English lady whose husband is general man- 
ager of the Central Argentine Railroad. Mr. 
P. was quite young, but he had shown so much 
ability that a great future was predicted for 
him. His wife was a sweet English girl, and 
they had one son, Dickey, — a darling little boy 
of five. Mrs. B., another English lady, was 
there also. She had a small son about two 
years of age. They were discussing ways of 
bringing up boys, and they both admitted that 
six or seven was the proper age to place them 
in boarding school. Of course this seemed 
strange to me, feeling, as I did, that I could not 
be separated from my sons until they were 
ready for college. It was very interesting to 
hear their points of view on many subjects; 
they were so entirely opposite from mine. We 
had a rubber of bridge, and Mrs. R. and I took 
a long walk before returning to our hotel. We 
did not change, but dined in the grill. 

October V7th: Buenos Aires. 

Mrs. R. and I lunched with Mrs. B. today. 



BUENOS AIRES 103 

She was another beautiful English lady whom 
I met at the " Lela," — the daughter of one of 
London's society leaders. Her husband owned 
large stone quarries in Uruguay and they lived 
a part of each year in Buenos Aires, and the 
other half in London. Their home was one of 
the older Argentine houses, — one story, — 
built around an open court which had a beau- 
tiful fountain in the center, with flowers, birds, 
palms, marble statues and benches, and roses 
and honeysuckle blooming on its sides, — a 
charming spot. The ceilings were of great 
height and the room enormous. We had a de- 
licious luncheon, and a rubber of bridge. 

It rained all the afternoon. Mrs. R. and 
I walked home through the rain and had tea 
in her rooms, making some delicious toast on 
her new electric toaster. This toaster was a 
present from some friend in New York. 

October ISth: Buenos Aires. 

Miss G. and her young sister lunched with 
me. They were so charming I enjoyed having 
them. I had a book, "The Wild Olive," to 
send to their mother. 

We had a big mail from U. S. A. and also 
from Europe. Although the letters were one 
month old, they were very precious, and com- 
forted me greatly, as I had had no news of J. 
since he left Bi Blanca, over a fortnight before. 



104 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

For a change, I ate my dinner in the grill. 
I was glad I did, because I saw there the gen- 
eral of the Argentine Army. I should judge 
that he was sixty years of age, and his wife, 
who was with him, might have been twenty-five. 
She was very pretty; had a beautiful figure; 
and dressed with great taste. Her hats and 
gowns were said to be quite marvelous. He 
was wearing the full-dress, regimental costume, 
— white trousers with gold stripes, a rich red 
coat with gold lace and buttons, a splendid 
sword and spurs of gold, and a helmet with 
gorgeous white plumes. His complexion was 
as dark as that of an Indian, and his eyes 
piercing black. He looked, indeed, like a fight- 
ing man, and one I should dislike to meet in 
battle. Every evening they walked for a half 
hour in the balcony, and added a touch of color 
to the always animated scene. 

October 19th: Buenos Aires. 

Carlos and Angelica dined with me tonight; 
it was nice to have them. The new Mayor of 
Buenos Aires gave a very smart dinner party 
here in the evening, and they danced in the ball 
room afterwards. It was quite an affair, and 
the ladies were most beautifully attired and 
very pretty. The wife of the mayor was ex- 
ceedingly good looking and quite young. The 
Argentines danced beautifully, I thought. 



BUENOS AIRES 105 

October 20th: Buenos Aires. 

Angelica took me shopping today. As she 
did not understand English and I did not speak 
Spanish, Carlos had suggested that she say to 
me, " Mrs. C, are you satisfied? " and I reply 
" No " or " Si." She was to arrange for the 
prices, etc. After visiting many shops very 
much like those of our own country, and try- 
ing on many beautiful hats, I at last selected 
a large, flat, English looking shape of French 
gray satin straw, faced in black velvet, with 
eight natural gray ostrich plumes. It com- 
pared very favorably in price with those in our 
shops on Fifth Avenue. It was most becom- 
ing, " un tres joli chapeau." I felt quite in 
fashion. Angelica, just to be polite and to 
show her appreciation of my taste, purchased 
one exactly like it. Carlos met us, and we 
drove to the French Cafe for some delicious 
cakes and coffee. 

October Qlst: Buenos Aires. 

The day was perfect, sunshiny, and just cool 
enough to be bracing. I concluded to go to 
Belgrano, a suburb of B. A. I knew Car 31 
would take me there. When I arrived in front 
of a Spanish church I got off the car and paid 
a visit to this beautiful example of old Moorish 
architecture. It contained some fine old paint- 
ings ; the windows and frescos were especially 



106 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

good. As usual, there were no seats. Some 
of the altars were most interesting. I liked 
it the best of all the churches I had yet seen 
in B. A. Many wealthy Argentines had mag- 
nificent country homes in Belgrano. I got off 
the car at Palermo Park, and walked back to 
the hotel. I paused a moment to wonder again 
at the strangeness of the Recoletta Cemetery. 
Mr. and Mrs. R. gave a handsome dinner 
party for thirty friends tonight in a private 
dining room. It was a charming party ; I en- 
joyed it so much because I knew many of the 
guests, having met them when being entertained 
at the A.'s. The dinner was followed by bridge ; 
every one played so well, and always for money. 

October %%nd: Buenos Aires. 

The day was beautiful and I was delighted 
that I had been invited to the Golf Club for 
the tournament. I carried my kodak with me 
and took some pictures which I hoped would 
be good. I found I knew a great many people 
who were there, and every one was charming. 
Mrs. R. won the ladies' cup, which pleased me 
much. 

At tea I sat beside Mr. D., who very kindly 
sent me home in one of his motor cars and in- 
structed his man to drive me through many 
portions of the city which I had not yet seen. 
This city was a constant surprise. It seemed 



BUENOS AIRES 107 

to be endless ; the houses being, as many of them 
were, only one story, naturally they covered 
much ground. 

I met a French lady, Madam T. of Paris. 
Her husband was here in connection with the 
art exhibit. She was interesting, as she knew 
so many of the great painters in Paris. Her 
apartments were opposite ours. They had 
been here three months, and were sailing in two 
weeks for Paris. 

October 23rd: Buenos Aires. 

I wondered what had happened when the 
telephone awakened me at 8:30 this morning. 
I found that a picnic to the Tigre had been 
arranged by Mr. D. and that a car would call 
for the R.'s and myself at 9:30. Needless to 
say I was ready. The day was like one of our 
beautiful days in May; the sky was blue, and 
the sunshine and air perfect. The Tigre was 
a river situated about thirty miles from Buenos 
Aires, and on its banks were many fine villas, 
a casino, and several boat clubs. We started 
at 9:30 and followed the River Plate west 
along a fine boulevard, which had just been com- 
pleted. Two roadways were divided by a green 
turf and a row of trees. One of them was for 
those going west and the other for those com- 
ing east. All along this boulevard we saw 
splendid old country estates, with large plaster 



108 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

houses setting well back from the road. The 
tall, ivy colored walls bore roses and honey- 
suckle, rendering the air fragrant with their 
perfume. We heard birds with beautiful plum- 
age singing. 

When we arrived at the villa of Mrs. A. we 
found that about twenty other guests had ar- 
rived by motor. We were shown the villa, 
which was a beautiful English house, well ar- 
ranged and having bachelor quarters attached. 
I was told the house parties in the season were 
most delightful. The grounds were beautiful; 
there were squash, cricket and tennis courts. 
The boat house was so pretty, covered as it 
was with roses. There were a number of pleas- 
ure boats which took us for a ride on the river. 
After passing the fine buildings along the river, 
many different kinds of pleasure craft, and a 
house boat or two, we entered one of the many 
hundreds of narrow little water ways which 
led from the Tigre and which had formed in- 
numerable islands, many of which were planted 
with peach trees. I was told that when ripe) 
these peaches were very fine and had a delicious 
flavor. For over an hour we passed up and 
down, in and out of these fascinating narrow 
waterways, so narrow at times that we could 
have plucked the flowers on the banks, as they 
grew fairly into the water's edge. 

Suddenly an aroma of food became ap- 



BUENOS AIRES 109 

parent ; we had arrived at the island where our 
luncheon had been prepared. On landing, the 
first thing we saw was a whole lamb on a spit, 
being roasted before a large open fire. A 
kettle of potatoes was boiling, and fragrant 
coffee was brewing. A most generous and de- 
lectable feast was spread before our hungry 
eyes, — every delicacy one could fancy. Cold 
capon, salads, champagne and ices all were 
there, and such appetites after our long ride 
in the fresh spring air! The lamb was the 
most delicious I had ever tasted. Mr. D. fed 
the chickens bread soaked in " Scotch " ; it was 
droll to see them tumble on their heads. 

After luncheon every one played " bat ball." 
I had not seen it played since a child. We tied 
our coats to the trees for bases and used a 
flat board for a bat. There was much amuse- 
ment when dignified Mrs. R. collided with young 
D. and both were sent sprawling on the earth. 

We returned by still other waterways, beau- 
tifully shaded. When we again reached the 
main river it was midafternoon, and the Tigre 
presented an animated scene. There were 
crews, rowing races with their narrow shells 
and others punting in those queer looking 
punts, electric launches with gay awnings, and 
young people wearing brightly colored sport- 
ing costumes. The verandas of the club 
houses seemed equally animated, with many 



110 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

fashionably dressed people drinking tea, watch- 
ing the boats and listening to the fine music of 
the orchestra. We had tea at the villa, and 
every one took heaps of roses back to town. 

The ride home was delightful. When we 
reached the Hipodromo Argentino the races 
were just over and for a time it seemed as 
though it would be impossible for us to reach 
the hotel, as there were thousands of carriages, 
automobiles and people, going back to the city. 
I thought I had never enjoyed anything more 
than this very pleasant day. 

October 29th: Buenos Aires. 

I thought this morning I would not go out, 
and was enjoying a pleasant time writing and 
arranging my rooms. Hearing a noise and 
music, I looked from the balcony and saw a 
great crowd of Turks escorting their new Min- 
ister, Prince Ermin Arslan, who arrived from 
Turkey this morning. I hastily dressed and 
arrived at the reading room window just in 
time to see his " Majesty " drive into the court 
and enter the hotel. I saw him quite easily, as 
he waited several moments while his picture was 
being taken. He was a very good looking man, 
not at all as I had expected a Turk would look. 
He made quite an address to several thousand 
people who stood in front of the hotel. They 
were a very picturesque looking crowd, many 



BUENOS AIRES 111 

wearing their native costume. I afterwards 
understood that there were about fifty thousand 
Turks in this city. We had a thunder storm 
today. 

October 30th: Buenos Aires. 

Still raining! I lunched with Madam T. of 
Paris. She was most interesting, so very dif- 
ferent from any one else whom I had ever met. 
Her husband, who was positively the ugliest 
man I ever saw, was a " Deputy " and he had 
some official position here for the French Gov- 
ernment, — Commissioner for the Art Exhibi- 
tion, I think. She told me she was disposing 
of all her gowns and had already sold their 
automobile, which seemed extraordinary. 

After lunch we were chatting with Senora 
P. of Rio de Janeiro, — a very sweet lady, who 
speaks English fluently, having studied English 
with Prof. Darby, the same gentleman we met 
in Rio de Janeiro on our way to B. A. While 
chatting with her she often used this expression, 
— " My God." Of course I was shocked, but 
I was too polite to remark about it. Today 
when she used it again Madam T. was horrified 
and said, 

" Oh, you must not say that in English. 
Mon Dieu is all right in French, but in English, 
jamais, jamais! " 

The dear, gentle little Brazilian lady was 



112 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

very much embarrassed I was sure. Madam T. 
invited me to let her know when I would be in 
Paris, as she wished to introduce me to the 
artists' side of life. She promised to take me 
shopping, and after mentioning the best cou- 
turieres, modistes, etc., etc., she said: 

" Now the house of so and so is the best for 
complexion and hair dyeing." 

I remarked that I did not believe in either, 
but she assured me it was quite impossible not 
to resort to both in order to look presentable; 
that she thought every lady did. 

I went for a short visit to Martenez, and 
took tea with Ruth and Mr. G. Mrs. G. was 
quite indisposed today. It was too wet to visit 
the quint a. 

November 1st: Buenos Aires. 

It was quite hot, but in my rooms, with the 
shutters closed and the doors open, I found it 
very comfortable. It was one of those " no- 
body loves me " days, and when Mrs. R. 
knocked on my door, it was a most agreeable 
surprise and pleasure to see her. I suggested 
a drive on the Corso, and she said, 

" Just the thing to do." 

The Corso was gay that afternoon and we 
passed the Turkish minister several times; he 
looked quite princely. He rode in a victoria 



BUENOS AIRES 113 

which had red wheels ; the coachman and foot- 
man had red feathers on the sides of their tall 
hats and red bands on their uniforms ; the 
horses were a handsome black pair, driven with 
red lines. The beautiful senoritas were re- 
splendent in the latest Paris fashion, but they 
looked bored. 

Baron Krupp and his party created some 
excitement when they arrived in the evening 
accompanied by navy and army officers, barons, 
counts, etc., from Vienna. They came over in 
a battleship and brought along the court mili- 
tary band (which afterwards gave a fine con- 
cert in the Colon Theatre). They were 
escorted from the Dartsena Norte to this hotel 
by members of the Argentine navy. In the 
dining room they sat at one large table occupy- 
ing the center of the room. In their bright 
colored uniforms they presented a gay appear- 
ance. Many of them were very handsome, 
especially Baron Krupp. I afterward heard 
that their object in visiting this country was to 
make large meat contracts for Austria. 

November 2nd: Buenos Aires. 

Several times we had planned an excursion 
to La Plata, but not until today had we been 
able to go there. Dr. D., the S-P's, and my- 
self started about 11 a. m. It took us forty 



114 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

minutes to drive to the railroad station, where 
I was surprised to find a very modern and up- 
to-date station. 

La Plata was a city situated about forty 
miles southeast of B. A. on the sea coast. 
This city was laid out and planned to be the 
capital of Argentine, but for some reason it 
never became so. The streets were wide, well 
shaded and contained beautiful parks and 
splendid buildings. The Argentine navy yards 
were situated there, and the large meat packing 
houses were near the coast. All very large ves- 
sels called here, instead of at B. A. 

Our train left B. A. at 12 o'clock, the coun- 
try through which we traveled resembled parts 
of Missouri; the meadows were brilliant with 
the richly colored flowers, and fine herds of cat- 
tle stood to their knees in the purple alfalfa, 
which grew there abundantly. These cattle 
looked like splendid specimens of the Holstein 
breed. The large buildings of the Estancias 
were almost hidden by the great number of 
eucalyptus trees, which grow very rapidly in 
this country. The ground appeared lower 
than the railroad tracks and there were no hills. 

After an hour and a half's ride, we arrived 
at our destination and walked from the station 
to the museum along a fine, wide avenue, 
densely shaded by rows of trees which grew on 
either side. On our way we passed the Zoo- 



BUENOS AIRES 115 

logical Garden; it was well arranged and con- 
tained many animals similar to those in B. A. 
The National Museum was a fine, large build- 
ing, containing many antediluvian and prehis- 
toric objects of great value and interest. 
After viewing the skeletons of giants, as well as 
pigmies, there was no longer any doubt in my 
mind about the existence of giants and dwarfs. 
" Jack, the Giant Killer " must have been 
buried in South America, as well as Gulliver's 
Lilliputians. 

One object that we saw was most interesting, 
— a piece of the skin and hair of a pre-historic 
animal, which had been found in a cave in lower 
Patagonia. It was in a perfect state of pres- 
ervation and was thought to have been many 
thousands of years old. This precious piece 
of skin and hair was in an air-tight, glass re- 
ceptacle. 

There were many other curios and interest- 
ing objects but we could not spend much time 
at the museum, as we were invited to visit the 
new school which Senor Nelson had just estab- 
lished. This gentleman was a graduate of 
Columbia College, U. S. A., and very charming 
and amiable. The buildings were very modern 
and attractive. They had an outdoor swim- 
ming pool, a good football and cricket ground, 
and the boys were as handsome and mischie- 
vous a lot of youths as you would see anywhere. 



116 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

They seemed to adore Seiior Nelson who 
thought these boarding schools would be a good 
thing for the youth, as hitherto young boys had 
been and still were much indulged by their par- 
ents, especially by the wealthier classes in 
Argentine. 

There was also a fine college located here. 
The buildings looked large and commodious, 
but as the college was not in session, we did not 
visit the interior of the buildings ; however, the 
campus and athletic grounds looked splendid. 
We drove about the city admiring the beautiful 
homes and well shaded streets, and saw some of 
the larger state buildings. 

When I arrived at the hotel about 8 p. m., I 
found a telegram from J. stating that he was 
well, and would arrive in B. A. the first of the 
following week. 

November 4<th: Buenos Aires. 

I entertained Lieutenant E., the young navy 
officer who was aboard the Vasari coming to 
B. A. from New York, and his brother, who 
had graduated from Cornell College the year 
previous. They were charming types of young 
Argentine men. The Cornell man spoke Eng- 
lish fluently, but the navy officer spoke only 
German and French. They told me that many 
of the young men of Argentina attended Cor- 
nell, it being their favorite college in the 



BUENOS AIRES 117 

U. S. A. The lieutenant looked very handsome 
in his full dress uniform. 

November Vth: Buenos Aires. 

I was thankful to see J. safe and in good 
health. He had had a very wonderful and 
interesting journey. The country through 
which he traveled was the exact opposite of 
that of his last expedition. The country in 
Patagonia was bleak and cold; there were se- 
vere winds, and most of the houses were not 
well heated. Sometimes when the wind blew 
very strongly they were obliged to go to bed 
in order to keep warm. Terra del Fuego was 
very barren, cold and uninteresting. They 
had found some oil, but the government wished 
to own and develop it themselves. Sometime 
it may become a great oil field, as it is near the 
sea coast and the oil could be used as fuel on 
the steamers and also used as fuel to heat the 
houses. It was a long and tiresome voyage, 
requiring thirty days on water, going and 
returning. 

Today J. had occasion to call on the city 
electrician of B. A., Senor N., who, he discov- 
ered, was the same gentleman he had met in our 
own city several years previous at a banquet 
given for some noted visiting electrical men. 
They recalled the meeting and Senor N. im- 
mediately invited us to dine with him that eve- 



118 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

ning at the Jockey Club ; unfortunately we had 
invited guests, so we asked him to join us 
instead. I was told that Senor N. was very 
popular in B. A. He was a member of many 
clubs and a devoted aviator, making an ascent 
every day when possible. We were invited to 
dine with him at the Jockey Club the next 
evening. 

November 8th: Buenos Aires. 

When I awoke this morning I saw some 
American Beauty roses and a box of bon bons 
on the table beside my bed. J. had got up very 
early and taken a walk down the Florida to 
purchase them. When one has been married 
twenty-five years, such attentions are very 
much appreciated. 

We had mail from the States and from 
Europe. J. and I drove on the Corso and at 
eight we went to dine with Senor N. at the 
Jockey Club. We had seen the club before but 
had never dined there. We were delighted with 
the delicious cuisine, which was said to be the 
finest in Argentina. Our dinner lasted three 
hours and each course was a surprise, compris- 
ing many delicacies which had been brought 
from Europe ; the wine was rare old Burgundy, 
our host was charming, and we enjoyed a de- 
lightful evening. 

Senor N. told us some of his experiences 





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BUENOS AIRES 119 

during his visit to U. S. A. six years previous. 
While staying in New York, the daughter of 
one of our most noted inventors begged her 
father to invite him for tea. She asked several 
of her girl friends to meet him and they were 
expecting a lark, but the young lady confessed 
afterwards that as they were prepared to meet 
an Indian with war paint, or some very un- 
usual person, they were surprised to meet in- 
stead a young gentleman who had been educated 
at Cornell and who spoke English as fluently 
as Spanish. 

Senor N. invited us to have breakfast next 
Sunday morning at the Aviation Club and 
afterwards to make an ascent with him in his 
balloon. He also asked us to attend the larg- 
est running horse race of the year, a sort of 
" Derby Day." We were to have admission 
to the Jockey Club grandstand and the priv- 
ilege of the paddock. 

November 9th: Buenos Aires. 

This afternoon we visited some of the Ex- 
position buildings, and returning, explored the 
Botanical Gardens, which were very interesting. 
Some of the trees were covered with exquisite 
sweet scented yellow and purple blossoms quite 
different from any I had seen in our country. 

Dr. B. gave us his box at the opera for the 
evening. There was a double bill," VPagli- 



120 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

acci " and " II Trovatore." P. and Mr. and 
Mrs. R. went with us. We liked the Span- 
ish company, and both operas were well ren- 
dered. The audience was smaller than the one 
which we had seen there the month previous ; 
many of the box holders had gone to Mar del 
Plata or Europe. But I noticed that the audi- 
ence seemed just as attentive and appreciative 
as they were the first evening we attended the 
opera. 

November 10th: Buenos Aires. 

The weather was quite warm. Cotton 
gowns were a necessity. J. gave a luncheon to 
some Argentine men friends. In the afternoon 
we drove on the Corso, calling at the " Recol- 
etta." I wanted J. to see this very strange 
cemetery. 

That night we had a dinner for our English 
friends, the R's, who were sailing the next day 
for England. I should miss them, but we hoped 
to see each other in London in January, and 
possibly we might spend some time at Monte 
Carlo together. How I wished we also were 
sailing on the morrow! It would probably be 
some time before J. would know when we should 
be ready to start. 

November 11th: Buenos Aires. 

It was a very hot day. P, lunched with us 



BUENOS AIRES 1£1 

and directly afterwards we started for the 
Pellegrini Races at the Hipodromo Argen- 
tine). 

When we arrived at the club house it was well 
filled. The building occupied by the club mem- 
bers was built of light gray plaster. The style 
of architecture was unique. From every con- 
ceivable nook and crevice hung pink vinirig 
geraniums ; the color effect was perfect. We 
found the grand stand comfortably filled and 
many were strolling on the lawn in front of the 
stand, where bright colored umbrellas had been 
placed over comfortable seats. I had never 
seen in one place so many splendid looking men 
or beautiful ladies ; the dresses of the ladies 
were the newest and best Paris creations, and 
were worn with much grace. The men were 
equally well groomed, wearing the invariable 
light spats, silk hat and morning coat. 

Just before the racing started, the president, 
Senor Sanz Pena, and his wife, followed by the 
military attaches in full uniform, were driven 
down the race track amid the cheers of the vast 
crowds of people who filled the public grand 
stands. They alighted at the entrance to the 
club house and were met by the Mayor of B. A. 
and the president of the Jockey Club and their 
wives ; then all walked to the grand stand. It 
gave one a fine opportunity to observe them 
closely. The Honorable James Bryce, the 



122 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

British Ambassador to Washington, and his 
wife, were there also. 

When the first race began there were twenty- 
six horses at the starting place. It was a won- 
derful sight to see them all dash off together. 
The prize for that race was forty thousand dol- 
lars in gold. The second race had twenty 
horses at the start and the purse was ten thou- 
sand dollars in gold. The betting was enor- 
mous. I was told it amounted to several 
hundred thousand dollars that day and the 
Journal announced that over a hundred thou- 
sand people attended the races. 

Between the races an Italian aviator, Can- 
tana, made some beautiful flights and alighted 
in front of the club house. 

We were hours securing our carriage, and 
returned to our hotel, very tired, but wonder- 
fully pleased that we had witnessed the day's 
sports. We were indebted to Senor N. for our 
invitation. 

The day was a national holiday. At the 
Tigre there were boat races, and in the evening 
a ball at the Casino. We were too tired to 
accept an invitation to the ball, but P. went and 
told us about it afterwards. 

Sunday, November l%th: Buenos Aires. 

We took breakfast at the Aviation Club with 
Senor N. this morning, and accepted his very 



BUENOS AIRES 123 

kind invitation to go with him in his balloon for 
a little ascent. It looked so beautiful, — this 
great, white, silken, swaying ball, tugging on 
the ropes like an uneasy steed, eager to be off. 
The day was perfect, not a cloud on the beau- 
tiful, blue sky; nothing could have been more 
desirable for our ascent, — only I was afraid. 
I could scarcely get my breath as we climbed 
into the basket. In a moment everything was 
ready, the fastenings loosened and we were off. 
No, it was the earth, the people, the houses, 
the trees and the river which seemed to sink 
away. I felt that we were perfectly still, and 
that they were slowly going farther and farther 
from us. The voices of the people were per- 
fectly audible, but they themselves seemed to be 
at a great distance. I felt as if nothing else 
would ever matter, — as if one would never wish 
to do anything else but breathe this wonderful 
air and float, as I had often seen a beautiful 
soft cloud on a June day. Palermo Park lay 
so quiet and green underneath us ; the city 
looked like a toy village in the distance; the 
River Plate seemed a sea of gold; the boule- 
vards were like bands bound around green par- 
cels. Our host explained how scientific bal- 
looning really was, how the many currents of 
air necessitated different ways of handling his 
toy. 

After enjoying this delightful sensation for 



1M A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

some time our host gave a little touch to the 
valve and slowly, dreamily, the earth began to 
rise to meet us ; voices again became audible, — 
the barking of the dogs, the noise of the tram- 
way, — and then, as gently as a bird alights 
on its nest, we came to earth and stepped out, 
satisfied that our friend was the nicest and 
kindest man in the world and that ballooning 
was simply " heavenly." 

Two years later our friend, Senor N., was 
killed while making a daring exhibition with an 
aeroplane at Mendoza. Some part of the ma- 
chinery broke and he fell five thousand feet and 
was killed instantly. The account of his 
funeral that I read in the B. A. Journal stated 
that the greatest honors were paid to his re- 
mains. His body laid two days in the City 
Hall, his friends carried the casket to " Recol- 
etta," and all the way was strewn with flow- 
ers. 

November 13th: Buenos Aires. 

A visit paid Senor and Senora de B. was an 
interesting experience. Their home was one of 
the typical Spanish houses. Everything about 
it was ancient and interesting, the queer court 
in the center of the building containing odd 
plants, birds and a fountain. The furniture 
was very antique, — the paintings also ; and the 
funny little knickknacks here and there looked 



BUENOS AIRES 125 

queer among such splendid pieces of furniture. 
The servants were native Indians who had prob- 
ably served them for years ; everything seemed 
to take one back into the past. These charm- 
ing old people seemed to be as active and keen 
as if they were fifty instead of ninety years of 
age. They had dressed to attend a wedding 
reception that evening. The Senora was wear- 
ing light blue silk, long and flowing, — it might 
have been made fifty years ago; the jewels on 
her bare neck and arms were priceless, and her 
black hair was beautifully arranged. 

They showed us photographs of many cele- 
brated men and women whom they had met, 
one of which was an autographed photograph 
of Don Pedro, which he had given to them many 
years before when, as a bride, the Senora had 
been in Rio de Janeiro and the Emperor had 
danced with her at a ball. 

The Senor was equally interesting. His tall 
and slender figure looked well in evening dress. 
He, I was told, was one of the original members 
of the Bolsa or Stock Exchange of B. A., and 
the Senora had always been a favorite and a 
great belle in her day. She presented us with 
their photographs. 

November 14th: Buenos Aires. 

I went with Senora U. to see some Paris 
gowns which a French couturiere was showing 



126 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

at the Grand Hotel. They were beautiful and 
were styles which would be sent to New York 
six months hence. However, the tariff for this 
country was quite as high as that of our own, 
and not thinking it advisable to pay double 
duty, I did not purchase anything. Besides, 
the prices were higher than for the same things 
in U. S. A. But they were very enticing, I 
must admit. 

November 15th: Buenos Aires. 

There lived in the hotel, with her parents, 
a beautiful young Argentine girl about eight- 
een years of age. We had quite fallen in love 
with R. She was rather petite; had beautiful 
blue eyes, and soft, wavy brown hair, an ex- 
quisite complexion, — like a ripe peach, — a 
perfect figure, and best of all, a charming per- 
sonality. She was educated in English, French 
and German boarding schools, and spoke all of 
these languages fluently. She rode horseback, 
fenced, swam, skated and danced and was alto- 
gether the dearest child I ever met. I was 
crazy to have P. meet her and I asked permis- 
sion of her parents to present him. 

This afternoon Senor and Senora de B. came 
for tea. I was waiting for them at the en- 
trance to the hotel and I saw them as they 
drove up in their old fashioned carriage. 
What a picture as they came up the steps, she 



BUENOS AIRES 127 

leaning on his arm, wearing a blue silk dress, 
long and flowing, which was almost covered 
with a fine, black, thread lace shawl. Her 
bonnet had artificial grapes and foliage which 
concealed the queer old shape. Senor had a 
white carnation in the button hole of his long, 
tightly buttoned Prince Albert, and the tall 
silk hat and white spats accentuated his six feet 
or more of height. He carried on his arm a 
gold headed cane, and in one hand a large 
bouquet of flowers made into one of those pyra- 
mid shapes, with lace paper underneath, which 
he at once bestowed upon me. During our tea 
she drew from an old silken receptacle or bag 
a bottle of rare old wine and a small pound 
cake, and presented them to me. Such dear, 
kind, old people, — how much I liked them! 

November 16th: Buenos Aires. 

While I was watching the young people 
dance a sweet child, whose home is in Chile and 
who was staying here in the hotel with his 
parents, took my hand and also a large red 
chiffon scarf which I wore, and dragging me 
on to the ball room floor, proceeded to enact 
a pantomime bull fight. Every one was en- 
thusiastic except myself, who, being the bull, 
was rather sore. There were no bull fights in 
B. A., but I understood that there were in 
Chile. 



128 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

November YWi: Buenos Aires. 

Dr. B. and P. called for us at 8:30 to take 
a little ride in the Park, but when we got to 
Palermo the morning was so fine we just kept 
on going, and before we realized it we were at 
the Tigre, a ride of 2D or 30 miles. The coun- 
try looked wonderful as we flew along in the 
splendid French car. J. had not seen this 
country before and he was delighted with the 
fine roads and splendid country estates ; it made 
one think of Long Island. Arriving at the 
Tigre, Dr. B. had his electric launch waiting 
for us, and for over an hour we followed the 
narrow little waterways, passing the number- 
less islands, one of which is owned by Dr. B. 
He insisted that we spend the entire day and 
lunch there; but we were obliged to be at our 
hotel at 12, as we had invited guests to 
luncheon. After a few refreshments at the 
Casino we started for B. A. and arrived at the 
steps of our hotel at 12 exactly. Our guests 
were awaiting us, and when we told them what 
we had done they were amazed at the speed of 
our car. 

Mr. and Mrs. A. and Mr. D. were lunching 
with us, and it was fortunate that the luncheon 
had been ordered beforehand. It was really 
difficult to make our kind friends understand 
how much we appreciated the many attentions 
which had been so agreeable and so enjoyable 



BUENOS AIRES 129 

and had added so much to our happiness in 
B. A. Senorita R. and P. dined with us that 
evening, but they scarcely saw us, they were so 
much absorbed in each other. I have never 
seen two young people better suited. I do hope 
they will be happy, since I feel responsible for 
their meeting. 

November 18th: Buenos Aires. 

Tonight we dined with the A.'s at the Tigre. 
We went down on the steam car. On arriving 
at the Tigre our host's electric launch was wait- 
ing for us and took us for a ride on the river and 
through the canals. The sunset was beautiful 
and the reflections on sky and water were superb. 
All the villas were occupied, and it was an ideal 
summer resort, although I was informed that 
most every one who could spent December and 
January at the fashionable sea side resort, Mar 
del Plata, situated on the sea coast two hundred 
miles by rail from B. A. The air was rather 
chilly, and when we arrived at the villa a big 
log fire was burning in the drawing room. It 
felt very comfortable. 

It was a gay little dinner party of about 
twenty of the friends we had met oftenest at 
Mrs. A.'s, — a sort of farewell dinner, as we 
were to sail on the 25th. I promised the nice 
English major a rich North American heiress 
for a wife if he would come to visit us. 



130 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

The moon was full going back to the station, 
and the reflection on the river was beautiful. 
When we arrived at the hotel it was midnight, 
and Buenos Aires looked wonderful by the bright 
moonlight. We lingered a long time on the bal- 
cony, enjoying the beautiful sight and congrat- 
ulating ourselves that we had been so happy 
during our visit in this interesting country. 

November 20th: Buenos Aires. 

It being our last Sunday in Buenos Aires we 
went to Martenez to say adieu to the G.'s. We 
found a number of other North Americans there 
also. We took P. with us ; he was charmed with 
this hospitable family. Every one was invited 
to visit the quinta, where we found that " cher- 
ries were ripe." Ladders stood beside the 
trees, and one was expected to climb them and 
eat all one wished. There were red, black, and 
white cherries ; it was difficult to determine which 
were best. That evening the parents of Senor- 
ita R., she and P. dined with us. These Latin 
love affairs progressed so rapidly they made me 
quite dizzy. 

November 21st: Buenos A ires . 

Senorita R. and P. went with me to investi- 
gate the steamship Cap Blanca, on which we had 
taken accommodations for France, sailing the 
25th of the month. Our cabins were large and 



BUENOS AIRES 131 

connecting and were on the right side of the 
steamer. I thought they would be very com- 
fortable. The boat was rather small but well 
commanded, I was told, and had a reputation 
for a fine cuisine. There were not to be over 
forty first-class passengers, which is desirable 
on a long voyage. 

We visited the Capitol building, as I had not 
yet seen much of its interior. We met a friend 
of Senorita R. who was a member of Congress, 
and he very courteously conducted us through 
the different departments. The building was 
modeled after our own Capitol at Washington 
and was very handsome indeed. Then we drove 
on the Corso, R. and P. being so happy together 
that we only returned in time for luncheon at 
12 :30. 

November %%nd: Buenos Aires. 

The English major and Senor N. lunched 
with us today. Ballooning and aviation were 
the principal topics of conversation. One won- 
ders what part they would take if there should 
be any great wars in the future. 

After lunch Major L. invited us all to go to 
Hurlingham to witness a polo match. We mo- 
tored out in Senor N.'s car, and the game was 
fine. They had some splendid ponies, and sev- 
eral of the English officers played a fine game. 
Hurlingham was the Englishman's racing club ; 



132 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

but I knew several Americans, attaches of our 
embassy, who kept fine horses there. 

November %3rd: Buenos Aires. 

P. entertained the parents of R. and our- 
selves at dinner that night ; afterwards he had a 
box party at the theatre. We saw a Spanish 
production of the new opera " The Count of 
Luxemburg." It was rendered by a company 
from Madrid, Spain. I saw it afterwards in 
my own country, — it was quite a different ver- 
sion. I was told that most operas were adapted 
to please the Argentine ideas. I should have 
been very happy, only all the evening I felt that 
a flea was biting me, and as George Moore said 
in one of his books, " It always bites one in just 
the spot one cannot reach." It was my own 
fault ; that afternoon I had walked through a 
portion of the city where many of the lower 
class of foreigners dwelt. The people always 
looked so interesting, but, as I found to my 
sorrow, it was not the most sanitary place in 
B. A. to walk. It was the only insect, except- 
ing the grasshopper, which I encountered while 
I lived in B. A. 

November %4tk: Thanksgiving in Buenos Aires. 

This was the hottest day we had had since 

coming to B. A., and I remembered often having 



BUENOS AIRES 133 

taken a sleigh ride on Thanksgiving. It was a 
very busy, happy day, — our last one in this 
lovely city. All the luggage except one piece 
had gone to the steamer Cap Blanco, which was 
sailing the next day at 10 a. m. 

My dear little R. had scarcely left me all day. 
She was sure that P. would propose that night 
at the ball which the hotel was giving for the 
guests from the U. S. A. in honor of our 
Thanksgiving Day. 

Monsieur J., the manager, and M., the head 
waiter, promised that the dinner which we gave 
for some friends that night should be a surprise ; 
and it surely was. Monsieur J. told me that he 
had cooked the canvas back ducks himself, and 
M. baked the French pancakes in blazing rum 
at the table. Every one was enthusiastic over 
these culinary efforts. Dr. B., one of our 
guests, sent us a wonderful floral piece; it was 
made up of dozens of orchids and lilies-of-the- 
valley arranged on an oblong basket. It was 
an exquisite present. 

P., dear Rosaria, Dr. B., his wife and our- 
selves had a very pleasant evening, attending the 
ball afterwards. I hated to think it was our 
last evening in this delightful city. I danced 
several times with P., who danced as only a 
South American can. All the young men of 
our embassy also asked me to dance. 



134 A VOYAGE TO SOUTH AMERICA 

November %5th: Aboard the S. S. Cap Blanco. 
It was with genuine regret that we left the 
Plaza Hotel. It had been such a comfortable 
home for ten weeks. The servants were so 
faithful and attentive and even Monsieur J., — 
thinking of our comfort, — had given us letters 
to the managers of the Hotel Ritz in Paris and 
the Carleton in London. When we arrived at 
the dock we found a score of friends awaiting 
on ship board to bid us bon voyage. They had 
filled our cabins with gifts, fruit, bonbons, wine, 
flowers, etc., — but best of all, they themselves 
were there to say adieu. We thought how dif- 
ferent it was from our landing ten weeks before. 
R. and P. were looking so radiantly happy I felt 
sure everything was settled; that they were be- 
trothed. As we sailed away, waving a fond 
farewell to those dear friends we left standing 
on the dock, we realized that all our dreams had 
come true and that all our expectations had 
been more than fulfilled. We knew that we 
loved our cousins of South America and adored 
Buenos Aires, the City Beautiful. 



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LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 

« in in 111 mi mill 

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